Water War
Ayalas Pit Themselves against Calamba Villagers
One of the Philippines’
mega-rich families – the Ayalas – are finding themselves locked in a war
over water in Calamba City. Calamba residents their water source could be
contaminated and worse, depleted because of a world-class golf course the
Ayalas are building.
BY DENNIS ESPADA
Bulatlat
CALAMBA CITY –
Residents of this city, which is some ___kms south of Manila, are finding
themselves locked in a struggle with one of the country’s wealthiest
families – the Ayalas. Reason: One of the Ayalas’ enterprises – the Ayala
Greenfield Development Corporation (AGDC) – is building a world-class
18-hole golf course which, villagers of seven barangays here fear, would
result in water contamination and a grave water shortage.
Noli Capulong, the deputy regional
coordinator of the progressive party-list Bayan Muna (People First) in
Southern Tagalog, warned over the weekend that with the large volume of
water that the Ayala golf course is expected to consume every day, the
underground aquifer located in Barangay (village) Bucal “could be depleted
at a fast rate.”
Local leaders of the affected
barangays have started a petition-signing in opposition to the golf course
of the AGDC’s Ayala Greenfield Estates, saying the project will not only
deplete but also contaminate their water. The water is used by 200,000
households.
An affiliate of the
Ayala Land, Inc., AGDC is pursuing real estate projects on a 500-hectare
land found in Barangays Maunong and Puting Lupa near the famous Mount
Makiling. Projects in the pipeline
include an exclusive subdivision, a clubhouse and a nature park.
The all-weather golf
course is said to be designed by a world-renowned architect, Robert Trent
Jones Jr.
To fast track the
golf course construction, the AGDC had asked the Calamba Water District (CWD)
to allow them to tap the Bucal Springs for its water source. Bucal is also
frequented by local and foreign tourists.
Secret agreement
The Ayalas got what
they wanted. On June 15, 2000, through their company AGDC, the Ayalas
signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with Martin Tancangco, CWD general
manager. The secret MoA gave AGDC the right to use a maximum of 300
liters of water per second at the rate of P1 for every cubic meter. The
rate was several times lower than what household consumers are charged by
CWD: P13 for every cubic meter of water.
It was only recently
that Bayan Muna-ST got hold of a copy of the secret MoA. Another copy was
also obtained by Bulatlat.
A recent study noted
that an 18-hole golf course normally consumes 800,000 gallons of water a
day.
Capulong said that
after carefully reading the MoA, “we cannot help but feel alarmed and
disturbed.” The four-year old MoA, he added, contains onerous provisions
that “could prove to be very detrimental to the health and safety of the
city's water consumers."
Delfin Declaro,
Bucal’s barangay chairman, agreed: " The MoA is one-sided. How can anyone
say that the project is for the development of the majority if it only
favors big businessmen?"
Bermuda grass
Golf courses also
feature artificially-developed Bermuda grass. A study conducted in 1998 by
the ecological research group Center for Environmental
Concerns-Philippines (CEC) revealed that the imported grass need intensive
chemicals such as fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides,
soil-improving agents, under-strata hardening agents, coagulants and
artificial coloring agents to maintain its greenery.
The use of pesticides
and other toxic chemicals could endanger the aquifer, the villagers also
said.
Capulong said that
the water to be used by the AGDC would mean the installation of
infrastructures and pump lines which in turn would deprive the community
of adequate water supply.
However, a source
from the Makati Development Corporation, one of AGDC's
contractors, dismissed Bayan Muna’s warning, saying that AGDC's operation
has complied with international quality and safety standards. Complaints
coming from the public are being addressed by the company, he also said.
Last September, the
Calamba city council’s environment committee tackled the issue but
reportedly missed the whole point about the imminent threat posed by the
Ayala project to the water source. This prompted Bayan Muna-ST to urge
Mayor Jun Chipeco to declare Barangay Bucal as a protected watershed.
Bayan Muna’s call
fell on deaf ears, however.
"Our position is that
the water district (CWD) should be a community-based, not a
corporate-based agency,” Capulong said. Water, he said, “should be
publicly-owned and controlled and there should be enough transparency in
its operation and management.
“Water is life and it
belongs to the people and nature," the Bayan Muna leader said. Bulatlat
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