Hold The Line For Negros Water Sovereignty!
The Issue
FORMAL NOTICE OF OPPOSITION AND DEMAND FOR
WITHHOLDING OF APPROVALS.
HOLD THE LINE FOR NEGROS WATER SOVEREIGNTY!
1. PREAMBLE: THE ECOLOGICAL & DEMOCRATIC BASELINE
This Manifesto is a formal record of our collective resolve formed during the Panubasuba
educational journey (June 19–20, 2026). Over 75 of us traversed the Malogo River—navigating loose stones, massive boulders, and strong currents—crystallizing a hard
truth: our rivers are living, fragile lifelines.
To survive, Negros requires 40% forest cover; we are nowhere near that goal.
According to Global Forest Watch, Negros Occidental has lost 9.4 thousand hectares of tree
cover since 2002. In dialogue with the communities of San Vicente (Brgy. Capitan Ramon,
Silay City) and Sitio Calaptan (Brgy. San Isidro, E.B. Magalona), we assert our fundamental
right to water sovereignty.
2. GROUNDS FOR OPPOSITION
We register our absolute opposition based on the following:
1. Democratic Subversion: The project is pushed under a false narrative of consensus.
Previous public hearings were "corporate pitches" that ignored formal rejections issued by
local councils and community stakeholders.
2. Degraded State of Protected Areas: Both the Northern Negros Natural Park (NNNP)
and the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park (MKNP) are in advanced ecological distress. Institutional
neglect has allowed illegal structures and land-grabbing to cripple the forest's ability to act as a sponge.
3. Subversion of Law & Ecosystem: Authorities prioritize Special Authority in Protected Areas (SAPA) for industrial extraction and resort conversion. This diminishes reforestation and dissolves natural ecological corridors, while the Protected Areas Community-Based Resource Management Agreement (PACBRMA) remains in administrative limbo.
4. Fatal Technical Gaps: The project’s Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is
scientifically inadequate. It fails to provide an inventory and the state of underground
aquifers, lacks a baseline survey of flora and fauna across elevation transects, and ignores
climate volatility.
5. The "Salt Water" Threat: The project offers no impact study regarding the saltwater
intrusion caused by large-scale extraction, which risks salinizing coastal freshwater reserves
and poisoning agricultural soils.
3. SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT: THE "COMMON TAO"
To corporate planners, this is a map of pipes; to the common tao, it is a threat to survival.
Extracting 34.5 million liters daily will lower the water table, drying up wells, poisoning
agricultural soil with saltwater, and alienating local communities from a natural gift that
should not be commodified for private profit.
4. FORMAL DEMANDS: THE CONDITION OF ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION
We demand the immediate and permanent withholding of all RONOs, zoning clearances,
and environmental permits. Any discussion regarding the Bulk Water Supply Project is
premature and rejected until the following conditions are met:
1. Restoration Before Extraction: The proponents must prove a verifiable increase in the
natural volume of water through a fully funded, aggressive, and mandated reforestation
program across the NNNP and MKNP.
2. Clearing the Watershed: Total, documented, and enforced demolition of all illegal
structures and vacation houses within the NNNP and MKNP to restore the integrity of the
natural ecological corridors.
3. Community-Managed Livelihoods: Aggressive support for community-managed
ecotourism initiatives. We demand that the government invest in these local enterprises as
the primary vehicle for livelihood improvement, empowering our people to serve as the
official guardians and protectors—the true stewards—of our natural resources.
4. Prioritization of Local Access: Immediate, prioritized access to clean water for the
residents of San Vicente (Brgy. Capitan Ramon, Silay City) and Sitio Calaptan (Brgy. San
Isidro, E.B. Magalona) as a prerequisite to any wider distribution plans.
5. Scientific & Transparency Prerequisite: Public disclosure of the state of underground
aquifers and a comprehensive study on saltwater intrusion.
6. Empowerment of Stewards: Full activation of the pending PACBRMA to place local
communities at the center of watershed management.
7. Contractual Transparency & Public Control: Full and immediate public disclosure of
all project contract agreements. If the project utilizes public funds, we demand that
management of the resource be kept in the hands of the LGUs to ensure a sustainable,
reliable flow of water at the faucets of every household, rather than facilitating private profit.
5. LEGAL RECOURSE & SOLIDARITY
Let this serve as formal notice that any attempt to prioritize industrial profit over the common good will be challenged. We are prepared to exhaust all administrative remedies and, if necessary, petition the Supreme Court for a Writ of Kalikasan.
"Kag ara man kami sa inyo"—the water must flow for all, and our ecosystems must be
restored before the first pipe is laid.
- - -
TO: The Honorable Members of the Executive and Legislative Councils (Silay City, Talisay
City, E.B. Magalona, Victorias City, and the Province of Negros Occidental); The Regional
Director, DENR-EMB; The National Water Resources Board (NWRB); The Protected Area
Management Board (PAMB); And all relevant national and local regulatory bodies.
FROM: The participants of the Panubasuba Educational Journey (June 19–20, 2026)—a
collective of over 75 individuals including Bantay Bukid, the Silay City DRRMO and medical
staff, youth groups from the parishes of St. Joseph (E.B. Magalona), San Roque, and Our
Lady of Victory (Victorias), the San Isidro Sangguniang Kabataan (SK), Kwebacommunity
operators, Barangay Officials and Tanod, Green Alert members, and various mountaineering
groups—and all concerned citizens and advocates who share this call.
DATE: June 20, 2026
Public Declaration: Every individual, organization, or community group that shares or
distributes this document formally adopts it as their official position.
445
The Issue
FORMAL NOTICE OF OPPOSITION AND DEMAND FOR
WITHHOLDING OF APPROVALS.
HOLD THE LINE FOR NEGROS WATER SOVEREIGNTY!
1. PREAMBLE: THE ECOLOGICAL & DEMOCRATIC BASELINE
This Manifesto is a formal record of our collective resolve formed during the Panubasuba
educational journey (June 19–20, 2026). Over 75 of us traversed the Malogo River—navigating loose stones, massive boulders, and strong currents—crystallizing a hard
truth: our rivers are living, fragile lifelines.
To survive, Negros requires 40% forest cover; we are nowhere near that goal.
According to Global Forest Watch, Negros Occidental has lost 9.4 thousand hectares of tree
cover since 2002. In dialogue with the communities of San Vicente (Brgy. Capitan Ramon,
Silay City) and Sitio Calaptan (Brgy. San Isidro, E.B. Magalona), we assert our fundamental
right to water sovereignty.
2. GROUNDS FOR OPPOSITION
We register our absolute opposition based on the following:
1. Democratic Subversion: The project is pushed under a false narrative of consensus.
Previous public hearings were "corporate pitches" that ignored formal rejections issued by
local councils and community stakeholders.
2. Degraded State of Protected Areas: Both the Northern Negros Natural Park (NNNP)
and the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park (MKNP) are in advanced ecological distress. Institutional
neglect has allowed illegal structures and land-grabbing to cripple the forest's ability to act as a sponge.
3. Subversion of Law & Ecosystem: Authorities prioritize Special Authority in Protected Areas (SAPA) for industrial extraction and resort conversion. This diminishes reforestation and dissolves natural ecological corridors, while the Protected Areas Community-Based Resource Management Agreement (PACBRMA) remains in administrative limbo.
4. Fatal Technical Gaps: The project’s Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is
scientifically inadequate. It fails to provide an inventory and the state of underground
aquifers, lacks a baseline survey of flora and fauna across elevation transects, and ignores
climate volatility.
5. The "Salt Water" Threat: The project offers no impact study regarding the saltwater
intrusion caused by large-scale extraction, which risks salinizing coastal freshwater reserves
and poisoning agricultural soils.
3. SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT: THE "COMMON TAO"
To corporate planners, this is a map of pipes; to the common tao, it is a threat to survival.
Extracting 34.5 million liters daily will lower the water table, drying up wells, poisoning
agricultural soil with saltwater, and alienating local communities from a natural gift that
should not be commodified for private profit.
4. FORMAL DEMANDS: THE CONDITION OF ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION
We demand the immediate and permanent withholding of all RONOs, zoning clearances,
and environmental permits. Any discussion regarding the Bulk Water Supply Project is
premature and rejected until the following conditions are met:
1. Restoration Before Extraction: The proponents must prove a verifiable increase in the
natural volume of water through a fully funded, aggressive, and mandated reforestation
program across the NNNP and MKNP.
2. Clearing the Watershed: Total, documented, and enforced demolition of all illegal
structures and vacation houses within the NNNP and MKNP to restore the integrity of the
natural ecological corridors.
3. Community-Managed Livelihoods: Aggressive support for community-managed
ecotourism initiatives. We demand that the government invest in these local enterprises as
the primary vehicle for livelihood improvement, empowering our people to serve as the
official guardians and protectors—the true stewards—of our natural resources.
4. Prioritization of Local Access: Immediate, prioritized access to clean water for the
residents of San Vicente (Brgy. Capitan Ramon, Silay City) and Sitio Calaptan (Brgy. San
Isidro, E.B. Magalona) as a prerequisite to any wider distribution plans.
5. Scientific & Transparency Prerequisite: Public disclosure of the state of underground
aquifers and a comprehensive study on saltwater intrusion.
6. Empowerment of Stewards: Full activation of the pending PACBRMA to place local
communities at the center of watershed management.
7. Contractual Transparency & Public Control: Full and immediate public disclosure of
all project contract agreements. If the project utilizes public funds, we demand that
management of the resource be kept in the hands of the LGUs to ensure a sustainable,
reliable flow of water at the faucets of every household, rather than facilitating private profit.
5. LEGAL RECOURSE & SOLIDARITY
Let this serve as formal notice that any attempt to prioritize industrial profit over the common good will be challenged. We are prepared to exhaust all administrative remedies and, if necessary, petition the Supreme Court for a Writ of Kalikasan.
"Kag ara man kami sa inyo"—the water must flow for all, and our ecosystems must be
restored before the first pipe is laid.
- - -
TO: The Honorable Members of the Executive and Legislative Councils (Silay City, Talisay
City, E.B. Magalona, Victorias City, and the Province of Negros Occidental); The Regional
Director, DENR-EMB; The National Water Resources Board (NWRB); The Protected Area
Management Board (PAMB); And all relevant national and local regulatory bodies.
FROM: The participants of the Panubasuba Educational Journey (June 19–20, 2026)—a
collective of over 75 individuals including Bantay Bukid, the Silay City DRRMO and medical
staff, youth groups from the parishes of St. Joseph (E.B. Magalona), San Roque, and Our
Lady of Victory (Victorias), the San Isidro Sangguniang Kabataan (SK), Kwebacommunity
operators, Barangay Officials and Tanod, Green Alert members, and various mountaineering
groups—and all concerned citizens and advocates who share this call.
DATE: June 20, 2026
Public Declaration: Every individual, organization, or community group that shares or
distributes this document formally adopts it as their official position.
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Petition created on June 23, 2026