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FPE joins ICCs/IPs as Intervenors in the Petition for the Availment of Environmental Charge from NPC-Managed Watersheds

Posted on July 12, 2016

FPE, together with the National Commission for Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), select local government unit (LGU) representatives of the Angat, Pantabangan, Magat, Upper and Lower Agno watersheds, and Indigenous Cultural Communities / Indigenous Peoples (ICCs/IPs) from the five watersheds, attended an Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) provincial hearing for the National Power Corporation’s (NPC) Plan 13 for Watershed Management and Rehabilitation ast July 7, 2016, at the Amphitheater, HRM Building, Wesleyan University Philippines, Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija.

NPC presented its watershed management plans for the five watersheds, while FPE, NCIP, and the ICCs/IPs were in attendance as intervenors for the case. PANLIPI's Atty. Girlie de Guzman served as counsel for the intervenors, along with other participants from the National Consultation - Workshop on  Sustainable Financing Mechanisms (SFM) for Watershed Rehabilitation and Management, particularly,  UC-EC (Universal Charge-Environmental Charge) and ER (Energy Regulation) 1-94, as amended, held last July 1 in Quezon City. FPE stands with the ICCs/IPs whose ancestral domains are located in the headwaters of the Angat, Pantabangan, Magat, Upper and Lower Agno watersheds, in lobbying for their participation in managing and conserving these watersheds, which is consistent with the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (IPRA). FPE’s Liza Vida positively notes the rise in community participation in the hearings: “The number of advocates and lawyers multiplied. There were 5 lawyers who entered their appearance as counsel for the intervenors and the oppositors.” 

Former NCIP Chairperson Zenaida-Brigida H. Pawid, Benguet Provincial Administrator Atty. Noel G. Ngolob, and PANLIPI's Atty. Girlie de Guzman

Critical to sound watershed management is not just the constant monitoring and evaluation of the interventions outlined in NPC’s plans, but the participation of the IPs and ICCs who are the stewards of the very same watersheds. During the provincial hearing last July 7, Vida adds, “Issues were clearly articulated by representatives from the communities [ICCs/IPs] and the LGUs—not only on recognizing the rights of IPs, their participation, the soundness of the plans, and the impact of interventions, but also [NPC's] transparency on the use of environmental charge.”

The Environmental Charge (EC, or one-fourth of one centavo per kilowatt-hour sales)—which is part of the Universal Charge (UC), or UC-EC, a portion of electricity sales collected nationwide—is pooled in a fund that is dedicated to the rehabilitation and management of 11 NPC-managed watersheds nationwide. This year, NPC's budget request for approval from the UC-EC fund is at PhP 426.71 million.

This was the first in a series of weekly hearings on the Petition for the Availment of the Environmental Charge/Share from the Universal Charge (UC) for these watersheds’ rehabilitation and management. The next hearing will be this Thursday, July 14, 10 a.m., at Xavier University, Ateneo de Cagayan, Cagayan de Oro City, and the following week, Thursday, July 21, 2 p.m., at the ERC Hearing Room, Pasig City.