Land-reclamation tack fraught with challenges, opportunities 

First of three parts

 

(Published in the Business Mirror, May 17, 2016) 

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/land-reclamation-tack-fraught-with-challenges-opportunities-3/

 

WITH the country’s rapidly increasing population vis-à-vis limited land resources, the prospect of land reclamation, basically a strategy for urban expansion, continues to stir debate among stakeholders.

Despite strong opposition, massive land reclamation is a strategy being pursued by the government to further boost the country’s economy, as space has become a scarce resource.

The issue of land reclamation becomes even more pressing with the advent of climate change, with fears that human folly, in pursuit of development at the expense of nature, may eventually lead to problems of catastrophic proportions in the end.

Up in arms against massive land- reclamation projects, environmentalists and fishermen argue that more ecologically unsound projects would further damage the country’s already-vulnerable marine ecosystem, affect the country’s food-production capacity and endanger the lives of tens of thousands of people living in coastal areas.

A hotel building is being built near the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City. NONIE REYES

Under the administration of President Aquino, two small land-reclamation projects were successfully implemented, according to the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA).

These are the P360-million reclamation component of the Manila North Harbour Port Inc. involving 3 hectares and the P190-million reclamation component of the Batangas Agro-Industrial Development Corp. covering 4 hectares. Both were implemented through the public-private partnership (PPP) strategy of the Aquino administration.

Other than these two, land-fill projects that took place since June 2010 were made without the approval of the PRA, the agency that regulates land-reclamation projects.

Currently, the government is evaluating eight big land-reclamation projects in Metro Manila, Metro Cebu and Davao City, PRA Assistant General Manager Joselito D. Gonzales told the BusinessMirror in an interview.

These projects are expected to boost local and national development by way of capital inflow, wealth creation, job generation and increased government revenues, he said.

“Historically, mankind has always been attracted to beachfronts, not only because of its aesthetic beauty [but] because it has always been attractive to trade and commerce,” Gonzales said, explaining the global trend of urban expansion.

“If an [area of an] LGU [local government unit] is congested and there’re development opportunities, an LGU cannot encroach [on] its [neighboring LGU],” Gonzales said. That leaves the LGU “no other choice but to expand in coastal areas.”

Environmental impact

CLEMENTE Bautista of the environmental group Kalikasan-People’s Network for the Environment (Kalikasan-PNE) is averse to land reclamation, especially on coastal areas.

Bautista said the destruction of coastal habitats will lead to reduction of fish catch and productivity at the local level. Bautista, Kalikasan-PNE national coordinator, added such move will also increase the country’s vulnerability to climate change, such as supertyphoons, flooding and storm surges.

“These [projects] will lead to higher economic value of damages, particularly in urban areas.”

Moreover, Bautista said the opportunity to rehabilitate a coastal area, like the Manila Bay, will be lost. As such, he said, environmental services, like carbon capture and ecotourism, will also be lost.

However, Theresa Mundita S. Lim of the Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said there are environmental laws that provide a safeguard against excesses in land-reclamation projects.

These protect the country’s rich biodiversity against unbridled development, Lim, BMB director, said.

“We appreciate that safeguards are observed in every development projects, because we
really need to protect our rich biodiversity against destructive activities,” Lim added.

In case of massive land reclamation, Lim said, such activities should be conducted outside marine protected areas or away from areas with high concentration of biodiversity.

“That is why before undertaking [any] development project, we encourage proponents to do baseline studies as proof that the proposed project will not in any way harm our biodiversity.”

Risk perceptions

WHILE environmentalists warn against potential adverse impact of land reclamation to the environment, small fishermen generally oppose such activities, complaining of declining fish catch with the loss of important ecosystem, including breeding grounds of fish and other marine life.

Underscoring the economic opportunities in land reclamation, however, Gonzales said the only expressed dangers of land reclamation are the perception of certain sectors of society.

“A properly engineered reclamation is expected to withstand acts of nature. It could last up to a thousand or even 10,000 years,” he said.

In fact, Gonzales said land reclamation can provide coastal defense.

According to him, land reclamation can prevent storm surges and flooding, as the structures on the reclaimed land will act as barrier against sea-level rise, tsunamis or storm surge. Gonzales said this can be achieved without financial burden to the government by allowing reclamation for mixed-use development.

“In the case of Manila Bay, at an elevation sufficient enough for the new land mass, [reclaimed land can] serve as barrier for the low lying areas around the bay,” Gonzales, a lawyer, told the BusinessMirror. “Hydraulic structures can be designed and installed between the islands to regulate the flow of water, particularly during inclement weather conditions.”

According to Gonzales, the benefits of land reclamation may outweigh the risks if the project is implemented accordingly.

Engineering interventions

ACCORDING to Gonzales, coastal defense can be done either through hard- or soft-engineering interventions.

Hard engineering involves the cons-truction of concrete structures, while soft engineering involves the massive rehabilitation or reforestation of coastal areas.

Gonzales added that contrary to speculation, land reclamations are done in coordination with concerned government agencies, such as the Department of Agriculture (DA), particularly the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).

He said the DENR, which issues Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC), is also involved in such projects to ensure these are environmentally sound and that provisions of environmental laws are followed.

“Before we approve a project, we see to it that the BFAR and the DENR are involved,” he said. “If it’s [involving] a key biodiversity area, we would not have approved it.”

Opportunities teem

PRA’s Gonzales said land reclamation offers an opportunity for a well-planned and modern urban expanse. It could also enhance coastal environment in urban setting and provide coastal defense through hard engineering interventions in the face of intensifying typhoons being experienced in many parts of the country.

A government-owned and -controlled corporation (GOCC), PRA regulates land-reclamation projects and serves as property development and management of public estates or lands belonging to, managed and/or operated by the government.

Reclamation, defined as the deliberate action of filling up foreshore, offshores or submerged areas of public domain for specific use using acceptable filing materials and appropriate technology, is being done in many parts of the world.

The World Bank, for one, has loaned Japan in 2010 for land reclamation in Northern Japan. The Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, Hong Kong International Airport and its predecessor Kai Tak Airport were all built on reclaimed land. Singapore’s Ministry of National Development has also released a land reclamation plan for housing and recreation use by 2030.

Land reclamation in the Philippines, according to the PRA, has always been for expansion of highly urbanized areas, such as Metro Manila and Cebu. In some cases, land reclamation was undertaken for port expansion. It is also being done to provide for back-up areas for port facilities and for expansion of businesses thriving along seafronts.

Proponents, advocates

GONZALES clarified that the PRA is not a promoter of land-reclamation projects. Being the primary regulatory body tasked to evaluate proposed projects that involve reclamation, the PRA only evaluates the proposals that fall on its lap, he explained.

“I just want to make it clear, again, because we are being heavily criticized from all sectors as the promoter of land reclamation,” Gonzales said. “I would like to emphasize, we are not the promoters. Applications and proposals just come in, mostly local government unit who submit proposals.”

Citing PRA records, of the archipelago’s 36,000 kilometers shoreline, only 10 km have, so far, been subjected to land-reclamation activities, covering approximately 2,000 hectares. The main concentration of these projects is the urban areas, like Metro Manila and Metro Cebu.

“The small projects are spread over different areas of the country and are mostly for port-related reclamations.”

Manila Bay is where most of these land reclamation areas took place, Gonzales said. Cebu is in far second, also because of the extensive reclamation done there.