Conservation and Protection of

Waters and Watersheds and

Related Land Resources.
Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Art. 66, PD No. 1067 ( The Water Code ofthe

Philippines ) provides:

After due notice and hearing, the National Water

Resources Council may establish minimum
water levels as may be necessary for the
protection of the environment, control of
pollution, navigation, prevention of salt damage,
and general public use.
Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Any watershed or any area of land

adjacent to any surface water or overlying
any ground water may be declared by the
DENR as protected area.
The DENR may promulgate rules and
regulations to prohibit or control such
activities by the owners or occupants
thereof within the protected area.
Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

The conservation of fish and wild life shall

receive proper consideration and shall be
coordinated with other features of water
resources development programs.
Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Swamps and marshes which are owned by

the State and which primary value for
waterfowl propagation or other wildlife
purposes may be reserved and protected
from drainage operation and development.
Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

No person shall, without prior permission

from the Environment Management Bureau
(EMB), may build any works that may
reproduce dangerous and noxious
substances or perform any act which may
result in the introduction of sewage,
industrial waste, or any pollutant into any
source of water supply.
Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

The establishment of cemeteries and waste

disposal areas that may affect the source of
a water supply or a reservoir for domestic or
municipal use shall be subject to the rules
and regulations promulgated by the
Department of Health.
Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Tailings from mining operations and

sediments from placer mining shall not be
dumped into rivers and waterways without
prior permissions from the Council upon
recommendation from the EMB.
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Watersheds may be declared a protected area.

In Sta. Rosa Realty Development Corporation v. Court of Appeals, et al.,
the Court defined watersheds as an area drained by a river and its
tributaries and enclosed by a boundary or divide which divides it
from adjacent watersheds.

The definition does not exactly depict the complexities of a watershed. The
most important product of the a watershed is the water which is one of the
most important human necessities. The protection of watershed ensures an
adequate supply of water for future generations and the control of flashfloods
that not only damage property but also cause loss of lives. Protection of
watersheds is an intergenerational responsibility that needs to be answered
now.
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Sta. Rosa Realty Development Corporation v. Court of Appeals, et al.

Facts:
Petitioner Sta. Rosa Realty Development Corporation (SRRDC) was the
registered owner of two parcels of land, situated at Barangay Casile, Cabuyao,
Laguna, with a total area of 254.6 hectares. According to SRRDC, the
parcels of land are watersheds, which provide clean potable water to the
Canlubang community, and that ninety (90) light industries are now located in the
area.

Among the Respondents in the case are the Land Bank of the Philippines,
Municipal Agrarian Reform Office of Laguna, the BARC Chairman of Barangay
Casile and some potential farmer beneficiaries, who are residents of
Barangay Casile, Cabuyao, Laguna.
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Sta. Rosa Realty Development Corporation v. Court of Appeals, et al.

The Respondents alleged that the land is suitable and economically viable for
agricultural purposes, as evidenced by the Certification of the Department of
Agriculture, municipality of Cabuyao, Laguna. Then Secretary of Agrarian
Reform, Miriam Defensor Santiago placed the said landholding under
complusary acquisition by virtue of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform
Program.

Petitioner contested on the ground that the area was not appropriate for
agricultural purposes. The area was rugged in terrain with slopes of 18% and
above and that the occupants of the land were squatters (informal settlers), who
were not entitled to any land as beneficiaries.
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Sta. Rosa Realty Development Corporation v. Court of Appeals, et al.

Subsequent studies and survey showed that the parcels of land in question form
a vital part of a watershed area that needs to be protected. In a report of the
Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (ERDB), a research arm of
the DENR, regarding the environmental assessment of the Casile and
Kabanga-an river watersheds, they concluded that: The Casile and Kabanga-
an watersheds can be considered a most vital life support system to
thousands of inhabitants directly and indirectly affected by it. From
these watersheds come the natural God-given precious resource water. x x x
Clearing and tilling of the lands are totally inconsistent with sound
watershed management. More so, the introduction of earth disturbing
activities like road building and erection of permanent infrastructures. Unless
the pernicious agricultural activities of the Casile farmers are immediately
stopped, , it would not be long before these watersheds would cease to be of
value. x x x .
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Sta. Rosa Realty Development Corporation v. Court of Appeals, et al.

IN VIEW WHEREOF, the Court SETS ASIDE the decision of the Court of
Appeals. In lieu thereof, the Court REMANDS the case to the DARAB for
re-evaluation and determination of the nature of the parcels of land
involved to resolve the issue of its coverage by the Comprehensive Land
Reform Program. x x x
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

A watershed reservation is not subject to occupancy or

alienation.

The case of Collado, et al. v. Court of Appeals, reiterates the principle

that a watershed reservation is not susceptible of occupancy,
disposition, conveyance or alientaion.

The Public Land Act, applies exclusively to alienable and disposable public
agricultural lands. Forest lands, including watershed reservations, are
excluded. A positive act or official proclamation of the Executive Department is
needed to declassify land which had been earlier classified as a watershed
reservation and to convert it into alienable or disposable land for agricultural or
other purposes.
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Collado, et al. v. Court of Appeals

Facts:
Petitioner Edna T. Collado, along with other co-applicants filed with the land
registration court an application for registration of a parcel of land situated in
Antipolo Rizal. Attached to the application was a technical description,
stating this survey is inside IN-12 Mariquina Watershed. They further allege
that they have occupied the Lot since time immemorial. Their possession has
been open, public, notorious and in the concept of owners. They paid all real
estate taxes and submitted evidence to prove that there have been 9 transfers of
rights among them and their predecessors-in-interest.
RTC ruled in favor of the petitioners for having presented sufficient evidence to
establish registrable title over the property. The Court of Appeals, however,
declared null and void the said decision. The Supreme Court upheld the appellate
Courts decision.
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Collado, et al. v. Court of Appeals

Under the Regalian Doctrine, which is enshrined in the 1935 (Art. XIII, Sec. 1),
1973 (Art. XIV, Sec. 8), and 1987 Constitution (Art. XII, Sec. 2), all lands of the
public domain belong to the State. An applicant, for registration of a parcel of
land bears the burden of overcoming the presumption that the land sought
to be registered forms part of the public domain.

A positive Act of government is needed to declassify a public land and to convert

it into alienable or disposable land for agricultural or other purposes.

In the case at bar, the Petitioners failed to present any evidence whatsoever that
the land applied for has been segregated from the bulk of the public domain and
declared by competent authority to be alienable and disposable. Worse, the
technical description of the land, categorically stated that "This survey is inside
IN-12 Marikina Watershed under EO 33 for 81 years prior to the filing of
petitioners application.
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

A timber license covering a watershed area may be

withdrawn in the public interest.

It is public knowledge, as declared in Tan vs Director of Forestry, that

watersheds serve as a defense against soil erosion and guarantee the
steady supply of water.

As a matter of general policy, the Constitution expressly mandates the

conservation and proper utilization of natural resources, which includes the
countrys watersheds. A timber license is an instrument by which the State
regulates the utilization and disposition of forest resources, including
watershed areas, to the end that public public welfare is promoted.
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Tan vs Director of Forestry

Facts:
The Bureau of Forestry issued notice advertising for public bidding a certain tract
of public forest land situated in Olongapo, Zambales, within the former U.S. Naval
Reservation comprising 7,252 hectares of timberland, which was turned over by
the US Government to the Philippine Government. The area was granted to the
Petitioner Wenceslao Tan.

The Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources issued a general

memorandum order authorizing Dir. Of Forestry to grant new Ordinary Timber
Licenses (OTL) in the name of Tan.

Thereafter, Acting Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources promulgated a

memorandum revoking the authority delegated to the Director of Forestry to grant
ordinary timber licenses.
 Conservation and Protection of Waters and Watersheds and Related Land Resources.

Tan vs Director of Forestry

On the same date, OTL in the name of Tan, was signed by then Acting Director of
Forestry, without the approval of the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural
Resources.

The Secretary of ANR declared that the Petitioners timber license was signed
and released without authority and is therefore void ab initio.

"A license is merely a permit or privilege to do what otherwise would be

unlawful, and is not a contract between the authority, federal, state, or municipal,
granting it and the person to whom it is granted; neither is it property or a property
right, nor does it create a vested right; nor is it taxation.

The welfare of the people is the supreme law. Thus, no franchise or right can be
availed of to defeat the proper exercise of police power.