By JUNE S. BLANCO

BOHOL Gov. Erico Aumentado has found the key to effective protection of the environment: collective governance.
Aumentado revealed his “secret” during the recent workshop-forum on policy review and reform towards participatory environment and natural resources governance sponsored by the Ateneo de Manila School of Government (ASoG) in Makati City .

ASoG Dean Antonio La Viña asked Aumentado to be a resource speaker, he being the governor of the first province in the country to enact a local environment code (LEC).

In his invitation, La Viña said the forum will be a learning experience for local government units (LGUs) currently formulating their LECs as well as encouragement for those without one to initiate its creation.

Aumentado said he has two guiding principles in his governance and in managing Bohol ’s environment as well: building alliances and building on the accomplishments of his predecessors.

As such, he gave a two-thumbs-up rating for the crafting of the Bohol Environment Code – a product of a summit of stakeholders from both the government and private sectors, hence, participatory and within the ambit of building alliances.

Divided into technical working groups (TWGs), each group surfaced the realities –based on their own experience – in the status of the environment then, and suggested solutions.

These were collated, presented to the public and to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) for the enactment of the appropriate ordinance – all done before Aumentado’s time as governor. He found the code that had become the enforcers’ bible in managing the environment to be good, hence he strengthened it by issuing supporting executive orders – a classic example of his principle of building upon the accomplishments of predecessors.

The code created and institutionalized the Bohol Environment Management Office (Bemo) that oversaw the watch by the Coastal Law3 Enforcement Councils (Clecs) of the coast, and by Task Force Kabukiran which Aumentado chairs, of the uplands.

With the environment code and executive orders in place – and the governor’s political will as the stirring force – coastal law enforcers made 224 apprehensions, apprehended 1,044 persons and filed 162 cases in court against fishermen using illegal methods in 2008 alone.

With no apparent lowering of the guards of the enforcers in sight, the fishermen soon turned to alternate means of livelihood like seaweeds culture and mariculture including fish caging introduced by the province, especially for the 10 northern towns abutting the Danajon Double Barrier Reef – the only such formation in Asia .

Aumentado also issued an executive order enforcing the 20-meter salvage zone or easement for public use that prohibits the building of permanent structures within the area along shorelines of eco-cultural clusters in the province.

Another order constituted the technical working group for the Alona Beach sand recovery and shoreline rehabilitation project to save the beauty of the white-sand strip in Panglao – and the creation of Task Force Kabukiran to go after violators of land-based laws like anti illegal logging, quarrying and mining and other forestry laws.

The governor said tourism and agriculture are Bohol ’s major economic drivers. As such, the province cannot afford to ravage its environment which, along with its rich culture and heritage, is Bohol ’s tourism come-on, he explained.

His instruction to the task force to strictly implement these laws netted a government-owned cargo truck loaded with limestone for a government road project because of failure of the driver to present documents for the quarry materials.

The task force impounded the truck, releasing it only upon payment of the corresponding fine by the local government unit (LGU).

An incumbent local official is also in hot water for loading g’melina with no documents onto his truck. The governor finds no excuse for the official because being the top councilor who is a retired chief of police at that, he could not even claim ignorance of the law for his violation.

A sibling of another local official who is his political ally now also faces raps after transporting pebbles without documents.

Aside from seaweeds culture and mariculture, another strategy the governor developed under his environmental economics is the reforestation of barren and idle uplands with tuba-tuba or kasla (Jatropha curcas) for biofuel.

A one-hectare plantation will need two workers. As the province targets 12,000 hectares, this translates into jobs for 24,000 Boholanos and twice this number during harvest time. The berry-like fruits produce biofuel all production of which the Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) will buy.

Aumentado will sign shortly an agreement to the effect with PNOC and Petrogreen Corp. – the firm producing the seedlings of chosen high-yielding Jatropha varieties. PNOC will establish a biofuel expeller facility for every 3,000 hectares planted to Jatropha, it was learned.

The governor will also sign another agreement with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the ABS-CBN Foundation Bantay Kalikasan for the reforestation of two of Bohol ’s seven major watersheds. A banking institution has expressed willingness to partner with the provincial government to reforest a third watershed.

These are Bohol ’s contributions to mitigate global warming, he said.
Small these may be, Aumentado expressed confidence that these will make a difference.

POLITICAL WILL, ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS. Gov. Erico Aumentado shares Bohol’s best practices in environmental stewardship that has put even some of his political allies in hot water during the workshop-forum to review the Mining Act and environment and natural resources governance sponsored by the Ateneo de Manila School of Governance in Makati City. Foto: DIANA JEAN MORALEDA