A criminal complaint has been filed against the Universal Robina Corporation-Bais Distillery before the Bais City Prosecutor’s Office for a wastewater spill that caused damage amounting to about P182 million, a Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) official said on Thursday, Dec. 4.
The criminal complaint for alleged violation of the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System Act of 2018 for the spill of untreated waste water into the Tañon Strait was filed on Nov. 21, DENR Negros Island Region Director Charlie Fabre said.
URC also has a pending administrative complaint with the Pollution Adjudication Board, Fabre reported at a NIR Regional Development Council meeting in Bacolod City on Thursday.
The distillery has yet to be granted permission to resume operations. As of November 7, water collected from ten monitoring stations was observed to be clear, and the rehabilitation of the main dike had been completed, Fabre said.
The P182 million damage is based on the estimate of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, which they used in filing the case before the Bais City Prosecutor’s Office, but the figure could be higher, he said.
They have asked Silliman University, University of the Philippines and the research division of the DENR to conduct a study on the extent of the damage, Fabre said.
An initial report shows that about 255,000 cubic meters of waste water was spilled by URC, he said.
A science based study is needed on how to rehabilitate the Bais Bay and to determine how much it will cost, Fabre said.
The water spill was reported in late October following the collapse of the distillery’s dike.
Fabre said inspections of the Disaster Management Plan of 13 other sugar mills and bioethanol plants to ensure compliance with environment safety measures will be undertaken to prevent what happened at the URC distillery.
URC claims its dike broke because of an earthquake and heavy rains, he said.
However, prior to the incident URC had been asked to strengthen its dikes but it failed to do so, Fabre said.*
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