9.

6 ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS

By: April Grace Osano, Lyka Jea Deocares and Airon Floyd Lozada BSECE 4A

Environmental laws describe a network of regulations and customary laws that address the
effects of human activity on the natural environment. These laws are also referred to as environmental
and natural resource laws and center on the idea of environmental pollution. They serve as a foundation
for environmental sustainability and the full realization of its objectives is ever more urgent vis-à-vis
growing environmental pressures, which works to manage specific natural resources and environmental
impact assessment.

There are a few key areas that environmental law works to regulate in order to lessen the impact on
the environment. Some of these areas include:

• Air Quality
• Water Quality
• Waste Management
• Contaminant Cleanup
• Chemical Safety
• Resource Sustainability

Types of Environmental Law

1.) Command-and-control legislation

Most environmental law falls into a general category of laws known as “command and
control.” Such laws typically involve three elements: (1) identification of a type of
environmentally harmful activity, (2) imposition of specific conditions or standards on that
activity, and (3) prohibition of forms of the activity that fail to comply with the imposed
conditions or standards.

2.) Environmental assessment mandates

Unlike command-and-control regulations, which may directly limit discharges into the
environment, mandated environmental assessments protect the environment indirectly by
increasing the quantity and quality of publicly available information on the environmental
consequences of contemplated actions. Such mandates generally perform three functions: (1)
identification of a level or threshold of potential environmental impact at which a contemplated
action is significant enough to require the preparation of an assessment, (2) establis hment of
specific goals for the assessment mandated, and (3) setting of requirements to ensure that the
assessment will be considered in determining whether to proceed with the action as originally
contemplated or to pursue an alternative action.

3.) Economic incentives

The use of economic instruments to create incentives for environmental protection is a
popular form of environmental law. Such incentives include pollution taxes, subsidies for clean
technologies and practices, and the creation of markets in either environmental protection or
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pollution. Denmark, The Netherlands, and Sweden, for example, impose taxes on carbon dioxide
emissions, and the EU has debated whether to implement such a tax at the supranational level
to combat climate change.

4.) Set-aside schemes

A final method of environmental protection is the setting aside of lands and waters in
their natural state. In the United States, for example, the vast majority of the land owned by the
federal government (about one-third of the total land area of the country) can be developed
only with the approval of a federal agency. Europe has an extensive network of national parks
and preserves on both public and private land, and there are extensive national parks in
southern and eastern Africa in which wildlife is protected.

Environmental Law Principles

The design and application of modern environmental law have been shaped by a set of
principles and concepts outlined in publications such as Our Common Future (1987), published by the
World Commission on Environment and Development, and the Earth Summit’s Rio Declaration (1992).

• The precautionary principle

The precautionary principle requires that, if there is a strong suspicion that a certain activity
may have environmentally harmful consequences, it is better to control that activity now rather
than to wait for incontrovertible scientific evidence. This principle is expressed in the Rio
Declaration, which stipulates that, where there are “threats of serious or irreversible damage,
lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective
measures to prevent environmental degradation.”

• The prevention principle

The prevention principle is the fundamental notion behind laws regulating the generation,
transportation, treatment, storage, and disposal of hazardous waste and laws regulating the use
of pesticides.

• The “polluter pays” principle

The “polluter pays” principle underlies U.S. laws requiring the cleanup of releases of hazardous
substances, including oil. This principle also guides the policies of the EU and other governments
throughout the world. Accordingly, the purpose of many environmental regulations is to force
polluters to bear the real costs of their pollution, though such costs often are difficult to
calculate precisely. In theory, such measures encourage producers of pollution to make cleaner
products or to use cleaner technologies.

• The integration principle

Environmental protection requires that due consideration be given to the potential
consequences of environmentally fateful decisions. Various jurisdictions (e.g., the United States
and the EU) and business organizations (e.g., the U.S. Chamber of Commerce) have integrated
9.6 ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS

environmental considerations into their decision-making processes through environmental-

impact-assessment mandates and other provisions.

• The public participation principle

Decisions about environmental protection often formally integrate the views of the public.
Generally, government decisions to set environmental standards for specific types of pollution,
to permit significant environmentally damaging activities, or to preserve significant resources
are made only after the impending decision has been formally and publicly announced and the
public has been given the opportunity to influence the decision through written comments or
hearings.

What is an Environmental law in the Philippines?

Philippine Environmental Laws are simply the collection of laws, regulations, principles, policies,
directives, and agreements enforced by the Philippines’ government and the environmentally related
bodies to govern and regulate the human treatment of the environment.

Philippine environmental laws are covered by the constitution; statutes and local ordinances;
regulations promulgated by the state and local regulatory agencies; and court decisions interpreting
these laws and regulations.

Who creates environmental Laws in the Philippines?

The Congress of the Republic of the Philippines and the Presidency are responsible for the
creation of Philippines environmental laws but the Department of Environment and Natural Resources
also creates some laws.

Major Environmental Laws in the Philippines

A.) REPUBLIC ACT 9003 “ECOLOGICAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT OF 2000”

In partnership with stakeholders, the law aims to adopt a systematic, comprehensive

and ecological solid waste management program that shall ensure the protection of public
health and environment. The law ensures proper segregation, collection, storage, treatment and
disposal of solid waste through the formulation and adaptation of best eco-waste products.

B.) REPUBLIC ACT 9275 “PHILIPPINE CLEAN WATER ACT OF 2004”

The law aims to protect the country's water bodies from pollution from land-based
sources (industries and commercial establishments, agriculture and community/household
activities). It provides for comprehensive and integrated strategy to prevent and minimize
pollution through a multi-sectoral and participatory approach involving all the stakeholders.

C.) REPUBLIC ACT 8749 “PHILIPPINE CLEAN AIR ACT OF 1999”

The law aims to achieve and maintain clean air that meets the National Air Quality
guideline values for criteria pollutants, throughout the Philippines, while minimizing the possible
associated impacts to the economy.
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D.) REPUBLIC ACT 6969 “TOXIC SUBSTANCES, HAZARDOUS AND NUCLEAR WASTE CONTROL ACT
OF 1990”

The law aims to regulate restrict or prohibit the importation, manufacture, processing,
sale, distribution, use and disposal of chemical substances and mixtures the present
unreasonable risk to human health. It likewise prohibits the entry, even in transit, of hazardous
and nuclear wastes and their disposal into the Philippine territorial limits for whatever purpose;
and to provide advancement and facilitate research and studies on toxic chemicals.

E.) PRESIDENTIAL DECREE 1586 “ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT (EIS) SYSTEM OF 1978”

The Environment Impact Assessment System was formally established in 1978 with the
enactment of Presidential Decree no. 1586 to facilitate the attainment and maintenance of
rational and orderly balance between socio-economic development and environmental
protection. EIA is a planning and management tool that will help government, decision makers,
the proponents and the affected community address the negative consequences or risks on the
environment. The process assures implementation of environment-friendly projects.

Aside from the major environmental laws in the Philippines, there are also other top Philippine
laws in protecting the environment.

1. Executive Order No. 79 “Institutionalising and Implementing Reforms in the Philippines in the
Mining Sector Providing Policies and Guidelines to Ensure Environmental Protection and Responsible
Mining in the Utilisation of Mineral Resources”

This is one of the Philippine environmental laws enacted by the President of the Republic of the
Philippines, Benigno S. Aquino III in the City of Manila on the 6th day of July in the year 2012. The law
contains 22 sections on the reforms in the mining sector.

2. REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9154 “This Act shall be known as the Mt. Kanla-on Natural Park (MKNP) Act of
2001”

“An act establishing Mt. Kanla-on located in the cities of Bago, La Carlota, and San Carlos and in
the municipalities of La Castellana and Murcia, all in the province of Negros Occidental And in the city of
Canlaon and municipality of Vallehermoso, both in the province of Negros oriental, as a protected area
and a peripheral area as buffer zone providing for its management, and for other purpos es.”

This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws that was enacted by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the Philippines in Congress on the 11th of August, 2011 and was assembled this act
in 10 articles and 25 sections.

3. REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9147 “Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act.”

An act providing for the conservation and protection of wildlife resources and their habitats,
appropriating funds therefor and for other purposes.
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This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws that was enacted by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the Philippines in Congress on the 30th of July, 2001 and was assembled this act in 4
chapters (3 articles in the third chapter) and 41 sections.

4. REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9072 “National Caves and Cave Resources Management and Protection Act”

This is an act to manage and protect caves and cave resources and for other purposes

This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws that was enacted by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the Philippines in Congress approved on the 8th of April, 2001 and was assembled
this act in 15 sections.

5. EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 247 “Prescribing guidelines and establishing a regulatory framework for the
prospecting of biological and genetic resources, their by-products and Derivatives, for scientific and
commercial purposes; and other purposes”

This Executive order is being implemented by the Department of Environment and Natural
Resources (DENR) that is the primary government agency responsible for the conservation,
management, development, and sustainable use of the country’s environment and natural resources .
This law contains 15 sections.

6. ACT No. 3572 “An act of Prohibit the Cutting of Tindalo, Akle or Molave Trees, under certain
conditions, and to Penalise Violations Thereof”

This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws enacted by the Senate and House of
Representative of the Philippines in Legislature and by the authority of the same on the 26th November
1929, comprising 4 sections.

7. Department of Environmental and Natural Resources (DENR) administrative order no. 03:
“Implementing guidelines on the granting of preferential treatment to small fisher-folk relative to the
15-km Municipal water”

The Philippine Constitution provides for the preferential option for the poorest of the poor
sector of our society. This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws that was issued as a pursuant to
the directive of the President of the Philippines issued to the Secretaries of the Department of
Agriculture and Department of Interior and Local Government dated 15th of March, 1996 and in
consonance with Section 149 (b) of the LGC of 1991. This act is grouped into 4 sections and was issued
on the 25th of April, 1996 in Quezon City, Philippines.

8. Presidential Decree No. 825: “Providing penalty for improper disposal of garbage and other forms
of uncleanliness and for other purposes.”

This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws that was created with an objective for citizens
to take on the duty of keeping their environment or surroundings clean and wholesome .

This act is divided into six sections and was enacted by Ferdinand E. Marcos, President of the
Philippines on the 7th of November, 1975.
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9. Presidential Decree No. 856: “Code on Sanitation of the Philippines”

This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws that was enacted that all efforts of public
services should be directed with the purpose of promoting and protecting health. And th is is done by
updating and codifying her sanitary laws to ensure the keeping of modern sanitation standards.

This act was enacted by Ferdinand E. Marcos, President of the Philippines at the city of Manila
on the 23rd of December, 1975.

10. Presidential Decree No. 984: “Providing for the revision of Republic act no. 3931, commonly as the
pollution control law, and for other purposes”.

This act was enacted to modify the organisational structure of the National Pollution Control
Commission to make effective and efficient the discharge of its functions and responsive to the
demands of the times occasioned by the accelerative phase of the country’s industrialisation program.

This act was also created to give relevance to the National Pollution Control Commission as the
primary agency responsible for the prevention and control of environmental pollution.

11. Presidential Decree No. 1067: The Water Code of the Philippines

A decree instituting a water code, thereby riving and consolidating the laws governing the
ownership, appropriation, utilisation, exploitation, development, conservation, and protection of water
resources. Water is a vital national development and it has become increasingly necessary for the
government to intervene actively in improving the management of water resources.

This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws that was enacted by Ferdinand E. Marcos,
President of the Philippines on the 31st of December, 1976.

12. Presidential Decree No. 1152: “Philippine Environment Code”

This act was enacted to address the broad spectrum of the environment. This act was created to
complement the National Environment Protection Council under Presidential Decree No. 1121 with the
launching of a comprehensive program of environmental protection and manage ment.

Such a program assumes significance only when specific environment management policies are
established prescribing environment quality standards.

13. Republic Act No. 3571

This is an act to prohibit the cutting, destroying, or injuring of planted or growing trees,
flowering plants and shrubs or plants of scenic value along public roads, in plazas, parks, school
premises, or in any other public ground.

This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws that was enacted by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the Philippines in Congress on the 21st of June, 1963.
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14. Republic Act No. 3931

An act creating the National water and air pollution control commission. This is one of the
Philippine Environmental Laws that was enacted by the senate and house of representatives of the
Philippines in congress on the 18th of June of 1964.

15. Republic Act No. 8485

An act to promote animal welfare in the Philippines, otherwise known as “The Animal Welfare
Act of 1998”. This is one of the Philippine Environmental Laws that was enacted by the senate and house
of representatives of the Philippines in congress on the 11th of February, 1998.

Importance of Environmental laws

The environment is important for human existence. To protect the environment, it is important
to have some legislation in place. The environmental laws provide a guideline so that we can take care
of the environment in an effective manner. We have different legal organizations and charitable
institutions that take care of the environment and implement the rules.

The two basic factors that come under environmental law is conservation and management. This is a
common law that includes conventions, treaties, regulations and statutes to preserve and protect the
environment. It also required to be ensured that the law is followed when it comes to taking care of the
environment and maintaining a balance between humanity and nature. Negligence of these laws results
in various punishments.

1. Protect human health and the environment

There are some practices that interfere with the safety of human health and the
environment, and the work of the law is to protect people in such instances. For instance, the
use of harmful pesticides in agriculture that makes a really bad impact on human and animal
health is one of the areas where environmental law is concerned. Without these laws, there
would be no regulations concerning pollution, contamination, hunting, or even response to
disasters.
The main job of environmental law is to protect human health as well as the
environment. It is all about making balance. The role of the environment is to ensure that the
practices used in the environment do not cause harm to the environment, human or animal
health.

2. Waste management in a proper way

The environmental law is to make sure that the process of waste management does not
impact the environment or human health badly and also that waste materials are disposed of
according to the set standards and procedures. For example-Sweden even made it to the level
of importing waste from other countries by developing perfect waste managing and recycling
machinery.
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3. Govern industries and manufacturing

The setting up industries and manufacturing plants are not possible without the
environmental law. The environmental law will make sure that industries meet all the legal
obligations that are required to respect and save our environment. It is the duty of an
environmental lawyer to make sure that industries meet all the laws, and they are also
concerned about the protection of the surroundings and environment.

4. Protect environment officers

Protecting the environment is a very crucial job. The people like the officers and
enforcers who make sure that these regulations are met and respected also need to be
protected by the law and should be given the power to do their job in the most efficient way
without interference from outside. Therefore, the environment officers and enforcers need to
be protected by the law so that they can be able to do the job in the best way possible.
Enforcers and officers have to be protected to implement and control without any illegal
interference.

Components of Environmental Law

1. Waste Management
One of the major areas addressed by environmental law initiatives is waste
management. This can take the form of helping to build or upgrade waste management systems
to make sure that waste is not polluting groundwater or causing the spread of disease. It can
also take the form of managing radioactive waste materials. In areas of the world where
industrialization is changing traditional community living, there may also have to be education
programs done that demonstrate public health hygiene.

2. Food Production
Food production is another area covered by environmental law. Regulations will
concern everything from how seed is harvested and prepared to what types of fertilizer and
pesticides are used to nurture the crops to maturity. They will also examine processing,
packaging and storage facilities for food products to ensure that all ingredients are safe for
human consumption, and there is less risk for contamination or spoiled food.

3. Water Reserves
Making sure that adequate drinking water, or potable water, is available to a community
is another key issue with environmental law. Environmental law advocates will also look towards
creating reserves of water that can be adequately protected from contamination. They don’t
just look towards drinking and cooking water but making sure there is adequate irrigation for
crops as well.

Another aspect of water control is to make sure that proper drainage systems are in
place. This has to do with the health concerns that can be caused by standing water and how it
can promote the presence of disease carried by mosquitoes that can breed in standing water.
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4. Pollution Control and Remediation

Environmental law is concerned with the control of pollution on the one hand and the
conservation of natural resources on the other hand. It also has relevance to product design in
the form of environmentally friendly materials, emission controls and energy-efficient devices.

5. Flora and Fauna

Flora and fauna must be protected as they have been under constant threat by human
activity. Environmental law may be enacted to protect biodiversity or as a special means for
protecting species deemed important for other reasons. The need of the hour is to come up
with new laws to protect endangered species from poachers, prohibition on killing or disruption
of existing species and efforts to induce or support species recovery.

6. Mining
Environmental law also studies the impact of mining of natural resources from beneath
the ground. The extraction of these minerals from the ground causes pollution in the air and
water as chemicals come in contact with the environment. Mining also gets affected by various
regulations regarding environmental impact of mining as well as the health and safety of miners.

7. Emissions and Construction

Environmental law will also examine the condition and quality of housing and
transportation in regards to its improvement and expansion. In recent times, an example of how
environmental law helped to change and shape building policies is the focus on removing lead
and asbestos from the building.

References

https://www.un.org/ruleoflaw/thematic-areas/land-property-environment/environmental-law/

https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/environmental-law-and-its-components.php

https://ecac.emb.gov.ph/?page_id=43

https://www.britannica.com/topic/environmental-law/Environmental-assessment-mandates

https://environmentgo.com/philippine-environmental-laws/