Typhoons, Deforestation, Landslides

by Ipat Luna

Typhoons named Unding, Violeta, and Winnie wreaked havoc in the Philippines last year. In the last ten days of November, three provinces on the eastern coast of the island archipelago were slammed, resulting in devastating landslides that killed more than 1,000 people, with many more still missing. In the town of Infanta, recovery will take more than a year and the layer of mud will not be cleared for at least two cropping seasons.

Regional officials from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources quickly blamed illegal logging, but the national government had a different story. The unprecedented volume of rain loosened even primary forest areas and most scientists declared the landslides could not be attributed to logging alone. Certainly, commercial logging and the failure to enforce our strict environmental laws exacerbated nature`s fury.

The staff of nine at Tanggol Kalikasan`s Southern Tagalog office mobilized the day after the third typhoon and became a quasi disaster relief center. Lawyer Asis Perez (whose leadership of Task Force Matatag has netted scores of illegal fishers, their vessels, and catch) flew over the area to help determine the best response. All timber licenses in the southern part of the disaster area had expired in 1993, so it was difficult to go after the concession holders.

Following the advice of public interest scientists, Tanggol is working to ensure that appropriate parties undertake geohazard mapping and that open-access forests are replaced by properly managed community-based forestry agreements. Meanwhile, communities need legal assistance to take action against illegal and ill-advised logging. In the town of Dingalan in Aurora Province, Tanggol lawyers are now strategizing on steps the community can take to challenge an existing Private Land Timber Permit.

Ipat Luna is a longtime member of the E-LAW network. She is Chair of Tanggol Kalikasan, the Philippines` leading environmental law organization.