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JHUNIVEN C.

ORANTES JD – 2A
Case Digest

G.R. No. 129546 December 13, 2005

PROVINCE OF RIZAL, MUNICIPALITY OF SAN MATEO, PINTONG BOCAUE MULTIPURPOSE


COOPERATIVE, CONCERNED CITIZENS OF RIZAL, INC., ROLANDO E. VILLACORTE,
BERNARDO HIDALGO, ANANIAS EBUENGA, VILMA T. MONTAJES, FEDERICO MUNAR, JR.,
ROLANDO BEÑAS, SR., ET AL., and KILOSBAYAN, INC., Petitioners,
vs.
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY, SECRETARY OF ENVIRONMENT & NATURAL RESOURCES,
LAGUNA LAKE DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, SECRETARY OF PUBLIC WORKS & HIGHWAYS,
SECRETARY OF BUDGET & MANAGEMENT, METRO MANILA DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
and THE HONORABLE COURT OF APPEALS, Respondents.

FACTS:

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Environmental Management Bureau


granted the Metro Manila Authority (MMA) an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) for the
operation of a two-an-a-half-hectare garbage dump site in the municipality of San Mateo.

The Province of Rizal, Municipality of San Mateo and various concerned citizens raised serious
objections to the operation of the open dumpsite for health and ecological reasons. The Sangguniang Bayan
of Saan Mateo Rizal issued a resolution expressing a strong objection to the planned expansion of the
landfill operation in Pintong Bocaue and requesting President Ramos to disapprove the draft Presidential
Proclamation segregating 71.6 hectares from Marikina Watershed Reservation for the landfill site in Pintong
Bocaue, San Mateo, Rizal.

The Investigation Report of the Community Environment and Natural Resources Officer of DENR-
IV-1 stated that the source of the domestic water supply of over one thousand families would be adversely
affected by the dumping operations. The succeeding report included the observation that the use of areas as
dumping site greatly affected the ecological balance and environmental factors of the community. The
respondent LAGUNA LAKE DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY in fact informed the Metro Manila Authority
that the heavy pollution and risk of disease generated by dumpsites rendered the location of a dumpsite
within the Marikina Watershed Reservation incompatible with its program of upgrading the water quality of
the Laguna Lake. Another Investigation report submitted by the Regional Technical Director of DENR
reported respiratory illnesses among pupils of a primary school located approximately 100 meters from the
site, as well as the constant presence of large flies and windblown debris all over the school’s playground. It
further reiterated reports that leachate treatment plant had been eroded twice already, contaminating the
nearby creeks that were sources of potable water for the residents. The contaminated water was also found to
flow to the Wawa Dam and Boso-boso River, which in turn empties into Laguna de Bay.

Despite all these objections, the President issued Proclamation No. 635 excluding from the Marikina
Watershed Reservation certain portions thereof for use as a sanitary landfill under the Administration of the
Metro Manila Development Authority.
Justifying the proclamation, the DENR pointed out that the landfill site is part of the Public domain,
and that neither the province of Rizal nor the Municipality of San Mateo has the power to control or regulate
its use since properties of this nature belong to the national, and not to the local governments.

ISSUE:

Whether Province of Rizal or Municipality of San Mateo has the power to control or regulate the selection
of landfill site?

HELD:

Yes, these concerns are addressed by Rep. Act No. 9003. Approved on 26 January 2001, "The Ecological
Solid Waste Management Act of 2000" was enacted pursuant to the declared policy of the state "to adopt a
systematic, comprehensive and ecological solid waste management system which shall ensure the protection
of public health and environment, and utilize environmentally sound methods that maximize the utilization
of valuable resources and encourage resource conservation and recovery." It requires the adherence to a
Local Government Solid Waste Management Plan with regard to the collection and transfer, processing,
source reduction, recycling, composting and final disposal of solid wastes, the handling and disposal of
special wastes, education and public information, and the funding of solid waste management projects.

The said law mandates the formulation of a National Solid Waste Management Framework, which should
include, among other things, the method and procedure for the phaseout and the eventual closure within
eighteen months from effectivity of the Act in case of existing open dumps and/or sanitary landfills located
within an aquifer, groundwater reservoir or watershed area. Any landfills subsequently developed must
comply with the minimum requirements laid down in Section 40, specifically that the site selected must be
consistent with the overall land use plan of the local government unit, and that the site must be located
in an area where the landfill’s operation will not detrimentally affect environmentally sensitive
resources such as aquifers, groundwater reservoirs or watershed areas.

WHEREFORE, the petition is GRANTED. The Decision of the Court of Appeal is REVERSED and SET
ASIDE.

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