DENR Chief Says Chocolate Hills in Bohol Require Rehabilitation
BOHOL CHOCOLATE HILLS – Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga emphasized the necessity for rehabilitating the Chocolate Hills in Bohol.
Recent days have seen Chocolate Hills become a viral topic in various local media outlets and social networking platforms, sparked by a video shared by the vlogger ‘Ren The Adventurer‘. The attention on the resort escalated after the controversy surrounding Captain’s Peak Resort, prompting scrutiny of several other resorts within Chocolate Hills.
According to a report from Inquirer, Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga stressed the importance of removing illegal structures within Chocolate Hills to maintain Bohol’s status as the first global geopark designated by the United Nations in the Philippines.
During an inspection of structures within Chocolate Hills, Loyzaga highlighted the need for Bohol to adhere to certain standards in its development to preserve its geopark status. She was joined by Benhur Abalos, Secretary of the Interior and Local Government, who would lead a separate investigation into the officials responsible for allowing the construction of these buildings within the protected landscape.
Abalos and Loyzaga first visited Captain’s Peak Garden in Barangay Canmano, Sagbayan town, where they observed various structures situated at the base of the Chocolate Hills, a protected landscape under the Expanded National Integrated Areas Protected System (Nipas) Act.
The Chocolate Hills, renowned geological formations in Bohol, consist of 1,776 mounds that turn brown during the dry season, spanning multiple towns.
Documentation revealed that the land occupied by Captain’s Peak had been titled prior to Edgar Button’s acquisition in 2005, although the resort lacked an environmental compliance certificate (ECC) from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
Loyzaga suggested the possibility of demolishing and restoring these structures to mitigate ecological disturbance. She emphasized the importance of strengthening the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) responsible for overseeing developments within Chocolate Hills, underscoring the need for technical expertise among its members.
Abalos proposed a review of PAMB’s organizational structure to ensure proper checks and balances.
According to the report, Loyzaga also mentioned forthcoming changes in the application process for protected areas, indicating that such applications would now need approval from the DENR biodiversity bureau before being processed by the Environmental Management Bureau for ECC approval.
Regarding structures built before the Nipas Act, Loyzaga suggested operators consider employing the “mitigation hierarchy” to minimize environmental impact, with Abalos emphasizing the need to preserve protected areas.