Porac, Pampanga — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) has formally cited Eco Protect Waste Management Corporation for its repeated environmental violations, as citizen watchdogs amplify calls for the landfill’s immediate shutdown.
In a letter made public recently, EMB Region III Regional Director Martin Jose V. Despi confirmed that his office issued the first Notice of Violation (NOV) in November 2024 and another on July 9, 2025, citing non-compliance with Presidential Decree (PD) 1586, which governs the Philippine Environmental Impact Statement System, and Republic Act (RA) 9275, the Philippine Clean Water Act.
“The facility is not yet registered as a Treatment Storage and Disposal (TSD) Facility; thus, it is not allowed to receive any treated hazardous waste,” Despi wrote last July 16.
Eco Protect was given 15 working days to explain why it should not be penalized. However, as of press time, the DENR has not announced any appropriate legal actions, despite the lapse of the period for compliance.
The agency’s move coincided with a pending petition filed by Pinoy Aksyon for Governance and the Environment, Inc., a citizens’ watchdog and policy think tank, urging DENR Secretary Raphael Lotilla to issue a cease-and-desist order against Eco Protect’s operations in Barangay Mancatian, Porac.
Pinoy Aksyon’s petition raised multiple concerns, starting with the landfill’s construction on unstable lahar deposits left by the 1991 Mt. Pinatubo eruption. The group cited technical studies warning that lahar soils are geotechnically weak and prone to erosion and collapse, especially during heavy rains or earthquakes.
The petition also flagged the landfill’s proximity to the Pasig-Potrero River, a major waterway supporting households, irrigation, and farms in Pampanga towns. Without sufficient safeguards, the group warned, leachate from the landfill could contaminate water supplies and aquifers.
The petition also pointed out the findings of Pampanga Governor Dennis “Delta” Pineda, who in June suspended the hauling permits of garbage trucks from Bulacan after personally inspecting the site. That inspection uncovered unpermitted waste from outside Pampanga and even improperly labeled medical waste such as used dextrose bags, raising possible violations of RA 9003 and RA 6969 (Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Wastes Control Act).
The Pinoy Aksyon petition also noted that for residents of Porac and nearby towns, the concern extends beyond paperwork. Locals describe daily struggles with the stench of rotting garbage, dust clouds drifting into homes, and anxieties about what the next typhoon or earthquake could unleash.
For the group, the evidence is overwhelming. “From unstable lahar terrain to toxic leachate and now verified hazardous waste violations, the case a Cease-and-Desist Order is both urgent and justified. Our rivers, air, and soil are not expendable. The people of Pampanga deserve nothing less than full protection under the law,” said Bency Ellorin, president of Pinoy Aksyon.
Advocates have also called for transparency, demanding the release of all environmental impact assessments, groundwater monitoring data, and regulatory compliance reports submitted by Eco Protect. They are pressing for the creation of an independent review body composed of scientists, engineers, local officials, and community representatives to evaluate risks and recommend rehabilitation.
With official violations confirmed by the DENR and citizen groups pushing for urgent closure, the Eco Protect case has become a crucial test of enforcement. At stake, advocates say, are the health of Pampanga’s communities, the safety of its rivers and farmlands, and the credibility of environmental laws meant to protect them.
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