Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. past

Introduced by Representative
FRANZ E. ALVAREZ

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Bill specifies the boundary limits of agricultural lands with respect to present or
future forest or timber lands, mineral lands, and national parks in the municipalities of Araceli,
Dumaran, Taytay, El Nido and Coron in the Province of Palawan thereby effectively enabling

the Constitutional mandate enshrined in Section 4 of Article XII of the 1987 Constitution which
states:

“Section 4. The Congress shall, as soon as possible, determine, by law, the
specific limits of forest lands and national parks, marking clearly their
boundaries on the ground. Thereafter, such forest lands and national parks
shall be conserved and may not be increased nor diminished, except by law.
The Congress shall provide for such period as it may determine, measures to
prohibit logging in endangered forests and watershed areas.”

The principal objective of once and for all limiting the expanse of agricultural land areas
in the said municipalities is to arrest the unabated trading and exploitation of unclassified lands
that is reducing forest cover and compromising the rich biodiversity of Palawan. It is our shared
dream to see our people realize their full potential as human beings while ensuring the
continued existence of the very environment that will make such possible for us and the future
generation.

As early as 1990, Palawan has been recognized by the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as a Biosphere Reserve. According to the
Palawan Council for Sustainable Development, a policy-making institution that balances
development and preservation, Palawan's potential to showcase the co-existence of sustainable
development and protection of the environment even led to its inclusion in UNESCO's Man and
Biosphere Reserve Program.

Our gains highlighted by these two UNESCO recognition are threatened by the lack of
clear classification of lands as Palawan largely remains “unclassified” within Philippine statutory
context. Without legal classification, what should be protected forests cannot but succumb to
exploitation carried out in the guise of habitation and agriculture.

‘Select Palawan areas were, in several instances, subjected to various kinds of
classification by the National Government. These decrees, however, are ineffective instruments
to carry out our aspirations for failing to adapt to the present situation and provide for the
necessary guarantee to survive in the future. These decrees are even contradictory as will be
discussed following the enumeration:

1, Proclamation No. 219 (1967) DECLARING THE ENTIRE PROVINCE OF PALAWAN AS.
GAME REFUGE AND BIRD SANCTUARY, AND THE SMALL ISLANDS OF PALAWAN
AS NATIONAL RESERVES,


11.

. Proclamation No. 530-B (1969) AMENDING PROCLAMATION NO. 219 DATED JULY 2,

1967 WHICH DECLARES THE ENTIRE PROVINCE OF PALAWAN AS GAME
REFUGE AND BIRD SANCTUARY, AND THE SMALL ISLANDS OF PALAWAN AS
NATIONAL RESERVES

Proclamation No. 1232 (1974) AMENDING FURTHER PROCLAMATION NO. 219
DATED JULY 2, 1967, AS AMENDED BY PROCLAMATION NO. 530-B DATED
MARCH 8, 1968, DECLARING THE ENTIRE PROVINCE OF PALAWAN AS GAME
REFUGE AND BIRD SANCTUARY, AND THE SMALL ISLANDS OFF PALAWAN AS
NATIONAL RESERVES, BY EXCLUDING THEREFROM THE ISLANDS OF BUGSUK,
PANDANAN, MANTANGULE AND GABUNG, ALL IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF
BALABAC, PROVINCE OF PALAWAN, AND OPENING THE SAME TO DISPOSITION
AND ALIENATION UNDER THE PUBLIC LAND ACT

Proclamation No. 1440 (1975) AMENDING FURTHER PROCLAMATION NO. 219
DATED JULY 2, 1967, AS AMENDED BY PROCLAMATION NO. 530-B DATED
MARCH 8, 1968, AND AMENDED FURTHER BY PROCLAMATION NO. 1232 DATED
FEBRUARY 6, 1974, DECLARING THE ENTIRE PROVINCE OF PALAWAN AS GAME
REFUGE AND BIRD SANCTUARY, AND THE SMALL ISLANDS OF PALAWAN AS:
NATIONAL RESERVES, BY EXCLUDING THEREFROM THE ISLAND OF BANCALAN,
IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF BALABAC, PROVINCE OF PALAWAN, AND OPENING
THE SAME TO DISPOSITION AND ALIENATION UNDER THE PUBLIC LAND ACT

Proclamation No. 2152 (1981) WITHDRAWING FROM ENTRY, SALE, SETTLEMENT
OR OTHER FORMS OF DISPOSITION, AND ESTABLISHMENT AS MANGROVE
SWAMP FOREST RESERVES CERTAIN PARCELS OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN
AND/OR PARTS OF THE COUNTRY INCLUDING THE ENTIRE PROVINCE OF
PALAWAN

Department Administrative Order No. 87-08 (1987) IMPLEMENTATION OF THE
PROVISIONS OF PROCLAMATION NO. 2152 DECLARING THE ENTIRE PROVINCE
OF PALAWAN AND CERTAIN PARCELS OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN AND/OR PARTS
OF THE COUNTRY AS MANGROVE SWAMP FOREST RESERVES,

. Department Administrative Order No. 91-61 (1991) RULES ON THE ACCEPTANCE,

IDENTIFICATION, EVALUATION AND DELINEATION OF ANCESTRAL LAND CLAIMS
IN THE PROVINCE OF PALAWAN

. Department Administrative Order No. 98-40 (1998) DECLARING PORTIONS OF THE

PUBLIC FOREST AS ALIENABLE OR DISPOSABLE FOR CROPLAND AND OTHER,
PURPOSES AND SETTING ASIDE CERTAIN PARCELS THEREOF FOR
PERMANENT FOREST PURPOSES UNDER LC PROJECT NO. 5-G OF EL NIDO,
PALAWAN

Department Administrative Order No. 04-44 (2004) DECLARING PORTIONS OF THE
PUBLIC FOREST AS AGRICULTURAL LAND (ALIENABLE AND DISPOSABLE) FOR
CROPLAND AND OTHER PURPOSES AND SETTING ASIDE CERTAIN PARCELS
THEREOF FOR PERMANENT FOREST PURPOSES UNDER LC PROJECT NO. 1-Z-A.
OF PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, PALAWAN

). Department Administrative Order No. 04-45 (2004) DECLARING PORTIONS OF THE

PUBLIC FOREST AS AGRICULTURAL LAND (ALIENABLE AND DISPOSABLE) FOR
CROPLAND AND OTHER PURPOSES AND SETTING ASIDE CERTAIN PARCELS
THEREOF FOR PERMANENT FOREST PURPOSES UNDER LC PROJECT NO. 1-Z
OF PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, PALAWAN

Department Administrative Order No. 2007-21 (2007) DECLARING PORTIONS OF THE
PUBLIC FOREST AS AGRICULTURAL LAND (ALIENABLE AND DISPOSABLE) FOR
CROPLAND AND OTHER PURPOSES AND SETTING ASIDE CERTAIN PARCELS
THEREOF FOR PERMANENT FOREST PURPOSES UNDER LC PROJECT NO. 16-A
OF MUNICIPALITY OF CULION, PALAWAN


12. Department Administrative Order No. 2008-05 (2008) DECLARING PORTIONS OF THE
PUBLIC FOREST AS AGRICULTURAL LAND (ALIENABLE AND DISPOSABLE) FOR
CROPLAND AND OTHER PURPOSES AND SETTING ASIDE CERTAIN PARCELS
THEREOF FOR PERMANENT FOREST PURPOSES UNDER LC PROJECT NO. 1-2Z-B
OF PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, PALAWAN

‘A Proclamation declared the entire Province of Palawan as Game Refuge and Bird
Sanctuary with small islands as national reserves, while another, declared it as Mangrove
‘Swamp Forest Reserve. Following those Proclamations came Department Administrative
Orders that excluded certain portions and classified the areas as alienable and disposable
agricultural lands. These administrative classifications, if only periodically and consistently
decreed, could have answered the need for the use of both the government and the people
lasted only until 2008.

In effect, we see huge tracts of populated and developed areas in unclassified public
forests. The worst part is when due to the uncertainty in the classification of what is presently
occupied by residents, people venture into what should genuinely be treated as preservation
forests, mangrove swamps and foreshores, and small islands. Living in said areas may be
tolerated int the meantime for lack of a clear national land use policy and the more important
human need to survive. What is deplorable though, is the exploitation of the resources and the
inordinate occupation of land fueled by speculation that the land will increase in value

This Bill moves ahead of the proposed National Land Use and Management Act as it
builds upon the technical description generated by the assessment and ground survey of
Department Administrative Order No. 2008-24 (2008) or the GUIDELINES FOR THE
ASSESSMENT AND DELINEATION OF BOUNDARIES BETWEEN FORESTLANDS,
NATIONAL PARKS AND AGRICULTURAL LANDS previously conducted in Palawan.

The perspective, this Bill emphasizes, is to identify the areas for habitation, utilization,
and development leaving what is outside the zone in the status quo and within the ambit of
existing laws. The limitation, coupled with stricter enforcement of environment laws, hopes to
pull or herd to these areas those presently occupying and speculating on unclassified lands, or
areas that are better off reserved as forest lands or national parks. This approach reverses what
has been traditionally done with respect to national parks delineation in Palawan that both
restricted the expanse of what should ideally be protected as national parks while
encompassing highly developed, populated and urban settlements.

In view of the foregoing, the immediate passage of this Bill is earnestly sought.

FRANZ E. ALVAREZ


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

3950
HOUSE BILL NO."

Introduced by Representative
FRANZ E. ALVAREZ

AN ACT DELIMITING THE EXTENT OF ALIENABLE AND DISPOSABLE LANDS
VIS-A-VIS FOREST LANDS AND NATIONAL PARKS IN THE MUNICIPALITIES OF
ARACELI, DUMARAN, TAYTAY, EL NIDO AND CORON IN THE PROVINCE OF PALAWAN
BY CLASSIFYING PARCELS OF PUBLIC FORESTS AS AGRICULTURAL LANDS UNDER
THE 1987 CONSTITUTION

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled.

SECTION 1. The parcels of public forest in the Municipalities of Araceli, Dumaran, Taytay,
EI Nido and Coron in the Province of Palawan are hereby classified as agricultural lands that are
alienable and disposable under the purview of Commonwealth Act No. 141, otherwise known as
the Public Land Act, as amended.

Said parcels of land are more particularly described in the technical description appended
to this Bill generated by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources pursuant to the
provisions of Department Administrative Order No. 2008-24 (2008) or the GUIDELINES FOR THE
ASSESSMENT AND DELINEATION OF BOUNDARIES BETWEEN FORESTLANDS,
NATIONAL PARKS AND AGRICULTURAL LANDS.

SEC. 2. Within six (6) months following the effectivity of this Act, the Secretary of the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources shall promulgate the rules and regulations for
the effective implementation of this Act.

SEC. 3. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after publication in the Official Gazette
‘or two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Approved,