No Build Zone Policy

In line with the Governments effort to promote safety and protection

of itss people, particularly in the Yolanda (Haiyan) affected areas, the
classification of hazard zones susceptible to onslaught of typhoon,
flooding, landslides, and other hydrometereological hazards is hereby
adopted and the guidelines for activities therein are hereby issued for
the information and guidelines of all concerned.
Basic Policy
It is the policy of the state to maintain peace and order,
protect, life, liberty, and property, and promote the general
welfare of the people as essential for the enjoyment by all
the people of the blessings of democracy.
It is also the policy of the State to serve, protect and
promote the right of the people to a balance and healthful
ecology in accord with rhythm and harmony of nature.
It is the policy of the state to uphold the peoples
constitutional right to life and property by addressing the
root causes of vulnerabilities to disasters, strengthening
the countrys institutional capacity for disaster risk
reduction and management and building the resilience of
local communities to disaster including climate change
impact.
Legal basis
Joint DENR-DILG-DND-DPWH-DOST
Memorandum Circular
No.2014 01
Republic Act 386 known as the Civil Code of the Philippines
Art. 638. The banks of rivers and streams, even in case they
are of private ownership are subject throughout their entire length and
within a zone of three meters along their margins, to easement of
public use in the general interest of navigation, floatage, fishing, and
salvage.
Presidential Decree no. 1067 known as the Water Code of the
Philippines
Art. 51. The banks of rivers and streams and the shores of the
seas and lakes throughout their entire length and within a zone of
three (3) meters in urban areas, twenty (20) meters in agricultural
areas and forty (40) meters in forest areas, along their margins, are
subject to the easement of public use in the interest of recreation,
navigation, floatage, fishing and salvage. No person shall be allowed
to stay in this zone longer than what is necessary for recreation,

navigation, floatage, fishing or salvage or to build structures of any

kind.
Presidential Decree No. 1096, the National Building Code of the
Philippines
Section 105. Site Requirements.
The land or site upon which will be constructed any
building or structures, or any ancillary or auxiliary facilities thereto,
shall be sanitary, hygienic or safe. In the case of site or building
intended for the use as human habitation or abode, the same shall be
at a safe distance, as determined by competent authorities, from
streams or bodies of water and or sources considered to be polluted;
from volcano site and/or any other building considered to be a
potential source of fire and explosion.
Presidential Decree No. 705, the Revised Forestry Code of the
Philippines
Section16. Areas needed for forest purpose. The following
lands, even if they are below eighteen percent (18%) in slope, are
needed for forest purposes, and may not, therefore, be classified as
alienable and disposable land, to wit:
Twenty-meter (20) strips of land along the edge of the
normal high waterline of rivers and streams with channels of at least
five (5) meters wide.
Strips of mangrove or swamplands at least twenty (20)
meters wide, along shorelines facing oceans, lakes, and other bodies
of water, and strips of land at least twenty (20) meters wide facing
lakes.
Republic Act No. 10121, the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and
Management Act of 2010
Section 2 (g). Mainstream disaster risk reduction and climate
change in development processes such as policy formulation, socioeconomic development planning, budgeting and governance,
particularly in the areas of environment, agriculture, water, energy,
health, education, poverty reduction, land use and/or urban planning,
and public infrastructure and housing, among others.
(Memorandum Circular No.2014 01)

Mode Manner and manner of Implementation

Criticism from other sector

Tacloban CityTwo questions: What exactly is the No Build
Zone? And why was it imposed on Taclobans coasts?
Clearly, the latter isnt as easy to answer as the former. After all,
when environment and public works officials put up their No Build
Zone signs in February, they cited presidential decree 1067, issued
in 1976. Under the decree, also known as the Water Code, the
government allotted public space along the Philippines waterways for
recreation, fishing and navigation. The presidential edict, in turn,
disallowed construction of houses within three meters from riverbanks
and seashores in urban areas, 20 meters in agricultural lands, and 40
meters in forest areas.
No question about it: the codes intentions remain well and
good. However, you dont immediately and arbitrarily impose a 40meter No Build Zone in Tacloban (and other towns nearby) three
months after super-typhoon Yolanda struck Eastern Visayas without
any public consultation at all.
Except thats what exactly happened, thanks to the Department
of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), which issued the
declaration; and the Department of Public Works and Highways
(DPWH), which put up the signs. The move enraged many people,
Yolanda survivors and otherwise, including those who built property
a handful of which survived the typhoonalong the citys coasts. In
so many words, both scathing and sober, Tacloban City Mayor Alfred
G. Romualdez has publicly opposed the No Build Zone declarations
more than he can ever care to remember.
Palo, Leyte Vice Mayor Ronna Christian M. Reposarhimself
an ally of the Aquino administrationhas echoed these same
sentiments. The [no build zone] declaration is just an
announcement, says Reposar, who is also a lawyer belonging to
several alternative law groups. It became complicated when it was
declared in Tacloban. We saw it was delineated and suddenly, they
put up signages, he adds.
In an interview on the sidelines of a forum held in Tacloban City
weeks ago, Reposar mentions that not all areas destroyed by
Yolanda need to be covered by the No Build Zone. We have maps
and other geohazard information [about Tacloban and nearby areas]

and we should formulate policies based on that, he says. If youre

living in a flood-prone zone, he adds, then proper action should be
taken to ensure that you dont put up dwellings within a certain
distance from the shore or riverbank.
Reposar admits that these matters may even be way too
technical and/or theoretical in the current context of the unhurried
pace of rehabilitation work undertaken in Eastern Visayas.
He points to a more basic, fundamental precept. No
consultation process was ever conducted regarding the declaration,
says Reposar, adding that his group is eyeing to file a case before the
Supreme Court, if only to make the national government get its act
together regarding the No Build Zone declaration.
DISPLACED
However well meaning, the declaration (and the signs that
accompanied it) spawned grief and suffering among Yolanda
survivorsinside and outside of Tacloban City.
_______________________________________________________
Take Lilia A. Yman, a housewife who is also the president of
Love Tacloban Homeowners Association, an informal settlers group
in the citys fish port area.
Yman lives in a structure that she herself admits can hardly be
called a house. With a used tarpaulin for its roof and various kinds of
materials making up its walls, Yman shares these rickety quarters
with her husband (a tricycle driver) and two daughters (a third one,
the eldest, already has a family of her own).
Immediately after Yolanda, all 1,000 families in the area
including Ymanswere displaced and scattered all over Leyte. Not
long after Yolanda, they all came back, save for a few families,
because they wanted to defend their claim to their land, which the
government was in the process of giving them in the first place even
before the typhoon struck Tacloban. Because Ymans community is
located in a No Build Zone, that claimas well as negotiations for
turnover of land titlesis now in limbo. And that is just one of her
communitys many problems.

Like many others staying in a No Build Zone, Yman and her

family have been disqualified from receiving any shelter assistance
from international non-government organizations, which are waiting
for government to settle the issue once and for all. Global relief and
rehabilitation agencies have been prompted to withhold aid because
they dont want to be perceived as encouraging people to stay in
areas considered risky by the government.
Nowadays, every time it rains, Yman tries her bestgiven her
meager resourcesto protect her children from the downpour.
Theyve already been traumatized enough by Yolanda, she relates
in an interview.
Currently, as a leader of an informal settlers group, Yman is
doing her best to let their voices be heard. She has been
unsuccessful so far. The Aquino administration has yet to issue a
formal clarification about the No Build Zones. Unfortunately, it seems
to be taking its own sweet time to do so.
The national government has to speed it up, Reposar says.
Were not proceeding [with rehabilitation] because were waiting.
There are no parameters at all. And the No Build Zone is not even a
policy, he states.
_______________________________________________________

A GROUP of civil society organizations gave a failing grade to

President Benigno Aquino III over the no progress on no-build zones
policy.
Eight months after Typhoon Yolanda ravaged Eastern and
Central Visayas, the President has yet to issue concrete guidelines to
address a significant number of people who live within the 40-meter
no-build zones, which are arbitrarily declared as danger areas and
not fit for dwelling.
Despite the absence of a national guideline to implement the
no-build zones policy, widespread displacement of municipal
fisherfolk, particularly in Tacloban City in Leyte, Municipality of Carles
in Iloilo, and Bantayan Islands in Cebu, is happening, said Ruperto
Aleroza of the Save the Fisheries Now Network, a national coalition
of non-government organizations and peoples organization.

A conservative estimate by the National Anti-Poverty

Commission pegged around 252,688 fishing households will be
directly affected if the 40-meter no-build zones will be implemented.
I think local government units (LGUs) are waiting for the policy
direction from the national government. It is not enough to mark areas
as no-build zones; we need to address the needs for permanent
settlement. The problem for LGUs is that either we no longer have
lands available that are suitable for safe and decent settlement or we
dont have funds to buy lands for resettlement, said barangay
captain Gregorio Lantajo Jr. of San Joaquin in Palo, Leyte.
Municipal fisherfolk have already cried foul over the policy
pronouncement since this is a death sentence to their livelihood.
If the government will implement the no-build zones policy
arbitrarily, we will be displaced from our traditional areas for
seaweeds and fish drying and boat docking sites, said Abraham
Layos, a fisher from Madridejos, Cebu.
Kailangan matiyak na maaari pa rin naming gamitin ang
baybayin para sa aming pinagkikitaan. Kami na nga ang
pinakamahirap na sektor sa Pilipinas, kami pa ang pinapalayas, said
Losanto Castillo Jr. from Tacloban City.
Based on the National Statistical Coordination Board, fisherfolk
are considered to be the poorest of the poor with 41.4 percent
poverty incidence.
Being the poorest of the poor, municipal fisherfolk living in lowlying coastal communities are the most vulnerable sector from the
impacts of disasters and climate change. Aside from being
responsive to their needs, the government should also be extra
careful in its policy pronouncements and implementation of
rehabilitation and reconstruction in Yolanda affected communities,
said Gerry Arances of the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice.
The group called on the government, especially the Office of
the Presidential Assistant for Rehabilitation and Recovery (OPARR),
to deliver on its promise of issuing a national guideline on no-build
zones.
The OPARR, in a consultation with civil society organizations in
March 2014, promised that prior to their issuance of a guideline in

May 2014, consultations with affected sectors will be conducted. Until

now, guidelines have yet to be released. (PR)
_______________________________________________________

Friday, December 13, 2013

TACLOBAN CITY -- Building of houses 40 meters from the
shorelines is now prohibited following the passage by the City Council
here of a no-build zone ordinance during its regular session
Wednesday.
Lawyer Tecson John Lim said the ordinance was passed in response
to the request of the International Organization for Migration, UN
Habitat for Humanity, GIZ and the urban planning cluster until they
can come up with the proper building code and a master plan.
The 40 meters shall be measured after the high-tide, said Lim,
clarifying that the ordinance does not cover the already existing
structures.
Lim, in asking for understanding from affected residents, said
the City does not want a repeat of what had happened during
Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) last November 8.
Thousands of families have been left homeless by Yolanda,
considered the strongest typhoon in the world this year. As of Friday
(December 11), 6,009 people were confirmed
Whether or not you have a land title, no building permit will be
issued to you if you will put up residential houses within 40 meters of
the shorelines, said Lim.
The enforcement of the ordinance will affect some 7,339
families from coastal communities of the city.
Meantime, the families affected will be housed in various
bunkhouses or temporary shelters that are being constructed by the
Department of Public Works and Highways. (PNA/Sunnex)

UNDERSTANDING PARRS NO NO-BUILD ZONE POLICY : Good,

Bad, or What and Who Will Have the Final Say?
Posted on March 15, 2014
by Biodiversity, Innovation, Trade and Society (BITS) Policy Center,
Inc.
CURRENT SOCIETAL CONCERNS
Elpidio V. Peria
15 March 2014
Just the other day, the Office of the Presidential Assistant for
Recovery & Rehabilitation (OPARR) issued a press release that they
are not recommending a 40m No Build Zone policy for Yolandaaffected areas, saying that a blanket application of the policy will not
address exceptional circumstances and may be impractical for certain
areas, highlighting that in some areas, there will be fishing industries
or tourism-oriented businesses that still need to build structures within
40m from the coastline while other areas (which are covered by the
40m No Build Zone) are located in high elevations which are not
susceptible to storm surges.
The PARR recommended instead the creation of safe zones,
unsafe zones and no dwelling zones. In areas set aside as unsafe
zones, no structures would be build but in areas where structures
are necessary for livelihood or commercial purposes, residential
structures will be prohibited thus they will be considered as no
dwelling zones. The press release does not elaborate it, but it
appears that safe zones are areas where the usual buildings and
structures of whatever kind will be allowed.
Local government units, residents in the affected areas,
fisherfolk communities, NGOs, including businesspeople need to
understand the implications of this policy. Offhand, it must be noted
that, as reported online by Sunstar, Tacloban City passed already an
ordinance on such a policy, institutionalizing it, at least in the City.
This means that this policy will no longer apply to Tacloban City, the
epicenter of almost all media events and celebrity visits thus far, to
the detriment or non-highlighting of the similar situation experienced
by other affected areas.

Judging from the news reports on the subject, the no-build zone
policy is opposed by fishermen- they need their boats near the sea
and as reported by Rappler.com, the fishermen need only to push
their boats across the sand to get to the shore a few meters away;
even the survivors themselves are opposed to the policy, as most of
them have their homes and other forms of livelihood within these
zones.
At first glance, the stated PARR policy seems reasonable, but
are not the areas set for livelihood or commercial purposes, which is
common practice in almost all areas in urban and rural areas in
Philippines, also used as dwellings by those who run these
establishments, thus, making them no-dwelling zones will add to the
hardship of the residents and businesspeople running these places
as they may have to incur expenses traveling to and from their
residences and their places of livelihood or business. These people
will, as a consequence of this policy, may have to incur twice the
expense now, rebuilding their businesses and livelihoods and finding
a shelter they can call their own. Can these people really afford it?
Isnt it that the usual way is one revives one business or livelihood
first and then if business is good, sets aside some funds to build
ones house.
How about those earlier-mentioned fishing industries or
tourism-oriented businesses, are they in the category of safe zones
or no-dwelling zones, what can they do and not do being part of
such zones? Can they expand their perimeters or there are certain
limitations as to what they can do within their boundaries? What
about if the business will shut down, will their status remain, and what
about if they expand, are there limits to what they can do?
Finally, who gets to have the final say on what these zones will
be, it is clear the PARR is only a recommendatory body, as its press
release also said, it will all be up to the Sanggunians or legislative
bodies of these areas, who will have the final say in this.
Perhaps to get a better sense of what kind of policy needs to be
established, one may need to go back to a similar policy but may not
be the same in intent the easement of public use in water bodies,
found in art. 51 of a Marcos-era Presidential Decree signed into law
in 1976, the Water Code of the Philippines, which reads :

Article 51. The banks of rivers and streams and the shores of the
seas and lakes throughout their entire length and within a zone of
three (3) meters in urban areas, twenty (20) meters in agricultural
areas and forty (40) meters in forest areas, along their margins are
subject to the easement of public use in the interest of recreation,
navigation, floatage, fishing and salvage. No person shall be allowed
to stay in this zone longer than what is necessary for recreation,
navigation, floatage, fishing or salvage or to build structures of any
kind.
This law talks about a legal entity called an easement, which,
according to a recent case decided by the Supreme Court (Pilar
Development Corporation v. Ramon Dumadag, et.al., G.R. No.
194336, March 13, 2013) on this, is an encumbrance imposed upon
an immovable for the benefit of another immovable belonging to a
different owner or for the benefit of a community. In other words, an
easement is an imposition or burden set on another property, which in
this case is to benefit the broader public or the community. This is
something that must be done by a property owner, to benefit the
public. At the outset, an area set aside for this kind of easement
cannot fence off an area to keep away the public as that area is for
everybody, for everybodys kind of purposes.
What the Water Code envisages is either a 3-meter (for urban
areas), 20-meter (in agricultural areas), or a 40-meter (in forest
areas) easements of public use, and as stated by the Code, in the
interest of recreation, navigation floatage, fishing and salvage. To
further elaborate what this easement for public use will entail, the
Code further says : no person shall be allowed to stay in this zone
longer than what is necessary for recreation, navigation, floatage,
fishing or salvage or to build structures of any kind.
The idea of a no-build zone is of a different kind, and as
gleaned from the statements of the DENR Secretary, it means what it
says, nothing will be built in these areas, but the reason is to prevent
further hazards from natural calamities such as earthquakes, and as
recent experience has made us realize, including storm surges. The
DENR has not elaborated what further uses of the area may be
possible in case nothing is built on it anymore, like what the Water
Code easements provide as discussed.
The Supreme Court case earlier cited however mentions a
DENR Administrative Order No. 99-21 which provides details on

these public easements. So, perhaps to clarify what can be done and
not be done in these no-build zones, perhaps a further administrative
issuance maybe necessary.
What the PARR has proposed needs to be further debated and
reflected upon, perhaps it may only call for the dusting-off and
application of old laws that may actually suit what the situation calls
for.
https://bitsinbits.wordpress.com/2014/03/15/understanding-parrs-nono-build-zone-policy-good-bad-or-what-and-who-will-have-the-finalsay/
The movement against no-build zone, no-dwell zone policy will
spread like wildfire. The people in the coastal communities will
continue to expose and oppose this highly unacceptable adventure of
the government to deny our fisherfolk the rights to livelihood and
decent communities.
By GERRY ALBERRT CORPUZ
Bulatlat.com
MANILA A national federation of small fisherfolk organizations has
pressed the Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR) to dismantle all no-build zone markers it had installed since
last year and allow fishermen and other coastal villagers to return to
their fishing areas and communities.
In a press statement sent to media,, a copy of which was
emailed to Bulatlat.com, the progressive fisherfolk alliance
Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas
(Pamalakaya) asked DENR Secretary Ramon Paje to remove all
temporary markers it constructed indicating the 40-meter no build
zone policy from the coastline of San Joaquin in Palo, Leyte up to
San Juanico Bridge in Tacloban City.
In the name of the collective interest and genuine sentiment of the
people of Tacloban and Eastern Visayas, we hereby order the office
of DENR Secretary Ramon Paje to remove the no-build zone markers
from Palo to San Juanico Bridge and allow the safe return of small
fishermen to their place of economic activity and abode, said
Pamalakaya vice chairperson Salvador France.
The Pamalakaya leader noted that the no-build zone currently
imposed by DENR covers some 35.88 kilometers from Palo to

Tacloban City. France said the markers were installed by the

Department of PublicWorks and Highways (DPWH) upon the request
of the environment agency.
Something must be done to stop Malacaang, the DENR, the
DPWH and the rehabilitation task force of Panfilo Lacson from
clearing the area of small fisherfolk to give way to big business
groups. The rehabilitation, which the government wants to carry out,
is extremely anti-people, added France.

Pamalakaya last week staged a 10-boat fluvial protest in

Laguna Lake to protest the no-build zone, no-dwelling zone policy
currently imposed in coastal areas in Tacloban City and the rest of
Eastern Visayas, which were ravaged by super typhoon Yolanda last
year. The protesters maintained that the same will be soon carried
out in nine lake towns of Rizal and 18 towns of Laguna and the cities
of Taguig and Muntinlupa and would displace 3.9 million people
mainly small fishermen, poor farmers and urban poor around the
90,000 hectare lake.
The 10-boats powered by ragtag eight-horsepower engines
sailed along Binangonan fishport and carried placards containing the
demand for the scrapping of no-build zone, no-dwell zone policy and
the dismantling of Napindan Hydraulic Control Structure (NCHS) to
allow salt water from Manila Bay to enter Laguna de Bay via the
Pasig River to allow the cleansing of the lake and get rid of invasive
fish species like janitor fish, snake turtle fish and knife fish presently
pestering other edible fishes in the lake.
Pamalakaya said the fluvial protest in Laguna Lake is the
beginning of a long-running battle against the no-build zone, no-dwell
zone policy. He said more protests against the policy would be staged
in different parts of the country this month. The Pamalakaya leader
said protests against the no-build, no-dwell zone policy will also be
staged in Tacloban City and other coastal towns of Leyte and Eastern
Samar, Northern Negros, Northern Cebu, Northern Iloilo, Aklan, Capiz
in Panay Island and Palawan in Southern Tagalog region.
The movement against no-build zone, no-dwell zone policy will
spread like wildfire. The people in the coastal communities will
continue to expose and oppose this highly unacceptable adventure of

the government to deny our fisherfolk the rights to livelihood and

decent communities. The government of President Benigno Aquino III
has no option but to recall the policy and stop transnational
corporations and their local big partners from pursuing their land and
coastal grabbing sprees in Yolanda stricken areas, the group said.
20,000-hour deadline

The Aquino administration had imposed a 20,000-hour deadline

for rehabilitation czar Panfilo Lacson to expedite the rehabilitation of
areas devastated by Typhoon Yolanda. Among those corporations
that accepted the offer of the national government to undertake the
rehabilitation of Yolanda stricken areas are members of the Philippine
Business for Social Progress (PBSP) a non-government
organization created by the corporate sector to respond to poverty
during the Marcos administration and the Philippine Disaster
Response Foundation (PDRF), comprised by the same companies
organized last year at the height of calamities that struck the country.
Danilo Antonio, undersecretary of the rehabilitation campaign
said the big corporations are called development sponsors tapped to
identify and carry out priority projects in Yolanda devastated areas
such as housing, education, health and livelihood. He said the
rehabilitation of Tacloban City will be undertaken by the Philippine
Long Distance Telephone Co (PLDT) and the International Container
Terminal Services Inc (ICTSI). In Cebu, the government will tap the
services of Aboitiz and Metro Gaisano groups, while in Negros
Occidental, the rehabilitation projects will be funded by the Ayala
group of companies.
The national government also earmarked the 2nd district of
Leyte for the Lopez group, while the Metrobank group will take the
town of Palo also in Leyte. Meanwhile, Aklan, will be handled again
by the Ayala group and Globe Telecom, while the 5th district of Iloilo
will be handled by Ayala Land. The rehabilitation contracts for the 4th
district of Iloilo will be cornered by JG Summit Holdings, the 1st
district of Iloilo will go to Metro Pacific Investments Corp. while Guian
in Samar province will be given to Nickel Asia and other rehabilitation
projects in the rest of the Samar will be given to ABS-CBN
Corporation.

The national government has earmarked P360 billion fund for

big business while the people are still suffering from poverty, sickness
and loss of opportunities. The rehabilitation program is for business
opportunities and not for peoples rehabilitation at all, the
Pamalakaya leader lamented.
The group maintained that the no-build zone, no-dwelling zone
policy which rehabilitation secretary Lacson wants to carry out in
areas devastated by super typhoon Yolanda in Eastern Visayas and
other provinces will cover 171 cities and municipalities. Pamalakaya
said the national government have collapsed the 171 cities and
municipalities into 24 areas of intervention that would cover Eastern
Visayas and 34 more provinces affected by super typhoon Yolanda
and Habagat in 2013 and Ondoy in 2009.
Pamalakaya said a class war is highly needed to frustrate the
no-build zone, no-dwelling zone policy. It said an all-out war must be
the victims collective response against what the group a grand
declaration of war against the poor and an open invitation for
corporate takeover in areas stricken by super typhoon last year.
A class war to be participated by small fisherfolk shall be the
ultimate and correct response to this looming national recipe for
death and destruction, the group said.
Pamalakaya noted that the cruel intention of the Aquino
government is to remove fishing communities and contain fishing
activities to give way to construction of economic zones in Yolanda
stricken communities. The Pamalakaya official noted that the
Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) is planning to build a new
special manufacturing area in typhoon-ravaged Leyte under the
pretext of rehabilitation and reconstruction process in Eastern Visyas.
The group learned that PEZA have already identified a 10-ha
property that would be a possible site for the light industry, lowtechnology econozone. In addition, PEZA will also look into
applications for special economic zones in the area so that the
reconstruction and provision of jobs would be fast-tracked.
Pamalakaya argued that massive demolition of fishing
communities is further bolstered by a bill, which was filed in the
House of Representatives, seeking to create a special economic
zone in the typhoon-devastated city of Tacloban, Leyte. The group is

referring to House Bill 3640, or the Tacloban City Special Economic

Zone Act of 2013, filed by 10 lawmakers from the independent bloc
led by Leyte Representative Martin Romualdez, which stressed that
establishment of the zone would spur investments in Tacloban.
The ecozone bill asserts that there are physical, geographic
and natural attributes of the Tacloban City coastline area that can
make the creation of a freeport ideal. Tacloban port was a haven for
international ships and even carriers as evident during the relief
operations of some foreign countries in the aftermath of typhoon
Yolanda last November 8, 2013.
The bill likewise said that the port is easily accessible to large
commercial ships plying the seas of the Asia-Pacific Region and is
just a few kilometers from the Tacloban City airport, which has plenty
of room for upgrading to an international airport. Under the bill, the
proposed Tacloban City Ecozone will operate as a decentralized, selfreliant and self-sustaining, industrial, commercial/trading, agroindustrial, tourist, banking, financial and investment center with
suitable residential areas.

No-build zones confusion delays resettlement of Haiyan survivors

MANILA, 18 July 2014 (IRIN) - Mixed messages related to NoBuild Zones in coastal areas of the Philippines, including those
devastated by Typhoon Haiyan in November 2014 can create a false
sense of security, and prevent the rehabilitation of storm-displaced
people, officials and experts warn.
In the weeks after super typhoon Haiyan (local name Yolanda)
decimated the central Philippines, the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources (DENR) declared a 40-metre no-build zone
along the coastlines of Eastern Samar and Leyte, two of the worst-hit
areas.
The declaration was based on protocols outlined in Article 51 of
the PhilippineWater Code, a presidential decree. However, officials
say, the move could undermine safety and recovery efforts.
There is a misinterpretation of the Water Code. It gives the
wrong message that when you are beyond 40 metres of the coastline,

you are already safe, Alfred Romualdez, the mayor of Tacloban, told
IRIN.
Elevation is a better measure of protection. You cannot build a
structure that will withstand a storm surge or tsunami - the only way is
up, he said.
Tacloban, a coastal city in the central Philippines, was
swallowed up by storm surges reported to be as high as six metres.
Most of the over 6,000 deaths caused by Haiyan occurred in
Tacloban.
A May 2014 inter-agency report shows that around 26,000
people remain in tents and evacuation centres, or with host families;
and 200,000 people face prolonged displacement, the report said, if
the areas where they lived previously are declared by the government
as being in no dwelling zones. The designation means structures
can be built but not inhabited, which is often in practice interpreted to
mean no-build zone.
Government officials and humanitarian workers are concerned
that compliance with the 40-metre no-build zone can have the dual
effect of convincing people at lower elevations that they are safe
when they are not, and limiting relocation options by designating
some safe areas as off-limits.
Non-strict application
We recommend that we do not strictly apply the no-build zone
[guideline]. It is impractical to implement, said Karen Jimeno, director
of communications for the Office of the Presidential Advisor for
Rehabilitation and Recovery (OPARR).
OPARR was a committee created by President Benigno
Simeon Aquino III to oversee all rehabilitation efforts after Haiyan.
Instead of the blanket 40-metre no-build zone, OPARR is
recommending that areas be classified as safe zones, unsafe
zones, or controlled zones.
Building in controlled zones, for example, will be permitted as
long as there are mitigating measures in that area such as

mangroves, catch basins, or sea walls to protect against disasters.

OPARR is currently surveying affected areas using multihazard maps - which scope out the topography of an area and
determine its degree of vulnerability to certain disasters. Then the
committee will classify areas as safe, unsafe or controlled zones.
Previously the DENR-Mines and Geosciences Bureau
produced geo-hazard mapsthat classified areas according to their
degree of vulnerability to floods and landslides.
According to Jimeno, the multi-hazard maps will complement
the geo-hazard maps to include an areas vulnerability to storm surge
and earthquake, in addition to floods and landslides.
We hope that the LGUs [Local Government Units, which bear
principal responsibility for disaster response] can use the maps as an
evaluation tool to plan their resettlement and rebuilding efforts,
explained Sarah Jane Samalburo, chief science research specialist at
the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), which is
developing the maps in cooperation with the Japan International
Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Taking too long
While many welcome the development of multi-hazard maps as
part of build back better efforts, some are concerned that they are
taking too long to complete, leaving the displaced in limbo.
According to Samalburo, of the 171 municipalities affected by
Yolanda, 114 have been mapped out for landslide, 60 for flood and 20
for storm surge. A multi-hazard map to determine earthquake
vulnerability will be developed at a later date.
Our shelter interventions depend on these multi-hazards maps
and the decision of the local government on where to build. If you
look at their situation now, it is as if [the displaced] have not yet
received humanitarian aid, said Conrad Navidad, emergency
preparedness and response coordinator for the International
Organization for Migration (IOM), in the Philippines.
The May inter-agency report acknowledged that the

government had adjusted its blanket policy on no-build zones, but

pointed out that only limited options for resettlement remained.
Typhoon Ramussan (local name Glenda) made landfall in the
Philippines this week, killing at least 38 people. According to IOM,
several hundred Haiyan-displaced families were evacuated
temporarily from tents to other structures when flooding began.
nterAksyon.com
The online news portal of TV5
MANILA -- The no-build zone policy of rehabilitation chief Panfilo
Lacson is a nightmare to 100,000 fishermen in Yolanda-affected
areas, keeping at least 800,000 people dependent on fishing from
their source of livelihood, the fishermens alliance Pambansang
Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) said in
a news release Sunday.
The policy bans the construction of houses 40 meters from sea
coasts.
Pamalakaya is thus asking Department of Interior and Local
Government (DILG) Secretary Manuel Roxas II to stop Lacson from
carrying out the policy intended to keep coastal residents safe from
tsunamis and storm surges.
"Secretary Roxas should stop the Office of the President and
Ping Lacson from carrying out this all-time high brutality and
wholesale disregard of people's rights and welfare. The DILG chief
should rise above the occasion and take a decisive stand on the nodwell zone, no-build zone policy to protect the farmers, the fishermen,
and other marginalized people," Pamalakaya said in a statement.
In Panay Island alone, the policy would forcibly dislocate at
least 70,000 families or 350,000 people. Most of the displaced are
farmers and small fishermen, Pamalakaya vice chairpersons
Salvador France and Peter Gonzales. Citing government estimates,
they said the breakdown is: 36,300 families in Iloilo, 16,000 families in
Aklan, 12,000 families in Capiz, and 5,000 families in Antique.
Beyond Yolanda areas
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR) through the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) would

expand the coverage of no-build zone policy from 40 meters to 200

meters to pave the way for eco-tourism projects under the PublicPrivate Partnership (PPP) program, said Pamalakaya chairperson
and Anakpawis partylist Rep. Fernando Hicap.
This way, Hicap said, the policy will be carried out to give way
to corporate takeover by local and foreign private enterprises and
businesses involved in rehabilitation programs and cause severe
damage to livelihood and environment.
The policy will also be carried out in Laguna Lake and Manila
Bay to justify the construction of a new international airport and other
big-time PPP projects in the 90,000-hectare Laguna Lake and
provide premium to large-scale and widespread reclamation projects
in Manila Bay, Pamalakaya said.
In Laguna Lake, the no-build zone policy will dislocate around
3.9 million people, while in Manila Bay, about 6 million people will be
evicted to pave way for big land reclamation projects of the Public
Reclamation Authority (PRA), the fishermens group said.
At the same time, Pamalakaya urged lawmakers from Eastern
Visayas and other areas affected by the no-build zone, no-dwell zone
policy in Northern Negros, Northern Cebu, Panay Island, Guimaras,
and Palawan to support Hicaps House Resolution 947. This support
is needed so that the congressional inquiry on the impact of no-build
zone policy on small fishermen and other residents may push
through.
Last week, Hicap filed a resolution directing the House
Committees on Aquaculture and Fisheries and Public Works and
Highways to conduct a joint inquiry to investigate the impact of
the No Build Zone, No Dwell Zone policy on coastal areas affected by
super typhoon Yolanda last year.
"The policy prohibits small fishermen and other residents from
returning to their fishing villages and the construction of houses and
settlements near the coastlines and 40 meters away from the
shoreline are also prohibited," the resolution said.
As of 29 January 2014, the National Disaster Risk Reduction
and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported that typhoon Yolanda
affected at least 16 million people, mostly in Eastern Visayas, claimed

the lives of more than 6,000 people, injured nearly 30,000 people,
with almost 2,000 people still missing.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
By: Tarra Quismundo, June 4th, 2014 02:56 AM
MANILA, PhilippinesNearly seven months since tsunami-like
waves spawned by Super Typhoon Yolanda (international name:
Haiyan) swept away their loved ones and homes, some families in
disaster-stricken Tacloban City are back in the danger zone.
Philippine Red Cross chair Richard Gordon disclosed this on
Tuesday, citing a recent visit to Tacloban City where he saw newly
rebuilt houses on the coast of Barangay 69 (Anibong district).
Supposedly a no-build zone as designated under the governments
build back better program, makeshift houses are back in the section
of the city where Yolandas deadly storm surge pushed ships to
shore, indicating just how powerful the Nov. 8, 2013, monster storm
was.
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I have pictures. The roofs on the houses are all new, and they
are all beside the sea, Gordon said in a press briefing at the
Department of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, where he spoke ahead of
the disaster risk reduction and management conference to be held in
Manila this week.
He could not say how many families have so far moved back to
the coastal barangay. Thats the area where big ships [were swept to
shore]. Theres no way to get those ships out anymore. Theyre
surrounded by new houses, the former senator said.
I asked them, Why are you building there? [They said,] We
will be relocated but that would be hard for us. I told them to take the
new lots and still keep their old lots [on the coast], but that they
should not live there. [I told them,] If you live here, it would be
dangerous, said Gordon, a longtime advocate of communities that
are resilient instead of reactive in the event of disasters.
There has to be somebody doing that to the public, reminding
them of the risks of living on the hazard zone, Gordon said.
No one to blame

The Red Cross chair said it was not a criticism as nobody

not the government or the typhoon victimswas to blame for what
happened.
He, however, noted that more could be done in enforcing the
no-build zonepart of the national governments rehabilitation
program that aimed to relocate people away from areas deemed too
hazardous for habitation.
All of us want to build back better. If the President says this is a
no-build zone, that should be implemented by the building official.
There should be a relocation area for the people, Gordon said.
If not, it is inevitable that they will come back. You know how
resourceful Filipinos are. They wont wait for [government] to give
them new GI sheets. They will find a way on their own, he said.
Aside from resettlement, livelihood should also be provided by
the government.
In Taclobans hazard-prone coast, the main source of income is
fishing and heads of households could not abandon the area for fear
that their boats might be stolen, Gordon said.
So Im suggesting that they be moved to an area that is really
safe but not too far. Then [government should] buy a truck to ferry the
fishermen [from the relocation area to the coast]. And when a storm is
coming, the boats will again be transported to the evacuation area,
he said.
Empty houses
A facility such as a marina or pier secured by the police or
barangay officials would also be helpful.
There are many opportunities [to help]. It just takes some getting
used to. Once they get used to it, they will even do it on their own.
But if you dont do anything, they will just go back and rebuild their
homes [in the danger zone], Gordon said.
He had seen this in Iloilo City in the aftermath of Typhoon Frank
in June 2008, a powerful storm that caused widespread flooding in
the city.

I can say this because I have seen this in areas in Iloilo that
were hit by Typhoon Frank. There are resettlement houses that were
built there but theyre empty, because they were supposed to be for
fishermens families who didnt want to move, Gordon said.
This is not a criticism. This is just the reality of the situation, he said.
Gordon led the Red Cross in its relief, rescue and recovery
activities across the Visayas in the wake of the typhoon, largely
independent of the government in terms of funding.
Conclusion
It would be best if a new law would be enacted to clearly set
forth the parameter of such no build or no dwelling zone controversy,
to clearly define and prescribe the limit that would answer the
question and erase the doubts of those affected therein, in order that
it can be properly implemented. Laws existing are sufficient; the
problems boils down on how the law is being implemented by the
authorities and followed by the citizenry. Subject to just compensation
the Government can make use of its inherent power of eminent
domain if they so desire after all they have basis for such
expropriation. Communities living within the so declared no-build or
no-dwelling zone will be primary be affected, but since mostly
comprise of fisher folks, one way or another all we will be affected
surely the number of fisherman would decline since most probably
they would be relocated in an isolated place.

http://re-charge.ph/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-taclobansno-build-zone-but-are-afraid-to-ask/ (September 17,2015)

http://archive.sunstar.com.ph/tacloban/local-news/2014/07/08/aquinohit-over-no-progress-no-build-zones-352645

http://archive.sunstar.com.ph/breaking-news/2013/12/13/taclobanpasses-40-meter-no-build-zone-ordinance-318688

http://www.irinnews.org//report/100368/no-build-zones-confusiondelays-resettlement-of-haiyan-survivors#.VgIPVImwrqA