MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines, or the Republic of the Philippines, is a country

comprised of 7,107 islands in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific. The country is surrounded
by water: the Luzon Strait, the South China Sea, the Sulu Sea, the Celebes Sea and the
Philippine Sea. According to the United Nations, uncontrolled, rapid population growth has
contributed to extreme poverty, environmental degradation and pollution in the Philippines.
Water pollution is a major problem in the Philippines. According to Water Environment
Partnership in Asia (WEPA), 32 percent of the Philippines’ land mass — approximately 96,000
square kilometers — is used for agriculture. The primary crops are palay (rice), corn, sugar cane,
fruit, root crops, vegetables and trees (for rubber). Increased population, urbanization,
agriculture and industrialization have all reduced the quality of water in the Philippines.
According to WEPA, water pollution’s effects cost the Philippines approximately $1.3 billion
annually. The government continues to try to clean up the problem, implementing fines to
polluters as well as environmental taxes, but many problems have not been addressed.
According to government monitoring data, up to 58 percent of the groundwater tested was
contaminated with coliform, and approximately one third of illnesses monitored during a five-
year period were caused by water-borne sources. In addition to this, during the dry season,
many areas experience water shortages.

On its website, Greenpeace reports the water pollution in the Philippines is mostly wastewater
from the following sources:
1. Industrial: The metal varies according to industry — lead, mercury, chromium, cadmium and
cyanide.
2. Agricultural: Organic — decayed plants, dead animals, livestock manure, soil runoff; and
non-organic — pesticides and fertilizers.
3. Domestic sewage: Contains pathogens that threaten human health and life.
4. Other sources: Oil, mine or chemical spills and illegal dumping in or near water.
One of the most alarming things Greenpeace reports is that out of the Philippines’ 421 rivers, as
many as 50 are considered dead and unable to support any but the most robust life.

Greenpeace has been working to develop a solution to water pollution in the Philippines. The
organization supports the Clean Production context in which the public has a right to know
which toxins they are exposed to in their daily lives.

The Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR) also deals with water quality and is “a
national or regional environmental database or inventory of potentially hazardous chemical
substances and/or pollutants released to air, water and soil. It also contains information on
materials that are transferred off-site for treatment or disposal.”
According to Greenpeace Philippines, the concept of Clean Production is “a new way of looking
at production and consumption patterns.” The concept of producing consumer goods in this
way entails:
1. The elimination of all hazardous chemicals at all stages of production and the seeking of
safe, sustainable alternatives.
2. The reduction of waste generated.
3. The decreasing of the need for raw materials and energy.
4. The utilization of clean, renewable energy sources in the production process and design.

Hopefully with the implementation of PRTR, the public’s right to know and Clean Production, a
lot of the problems with water pollution in the Philippines will start to be solved.

The World Bank has helped address the problem of sewage wastewater in the Manila Bay.
Its Manila Third Sewerage Project (MTSP) tackled the sewage problem a growing urban
population poses. Some of the results of the project were:
1. Over 77,000 connections to water and sewage were provided between 2005 and 2012.
2. Approximately 50,000 more septic tanks were de-sludged per year from 2008 to 2012 for a
total of over 262,000.
3. Over 3.5 million people were educated by the project’s “public information campaign” from
2005 to 2012.
4. Connection to water gave women and children better health and hygiene and more time
since they did not have to spend time collecting and sanitizing water.
5. Soil conditions and crop yields were improved from using treated sewage as fertilizer.
6. In communities where the waste water treatment plants were built, urban renewal projects
also sparked — teams got out and cleaned up river banks; parks were built; and social
interaction took place.
The rivers in the capital city of Manila have received some attention lately. For instance, the
Marilao River which runs through the Bulacan Province and into Manila Bay was on the 10 Most
Polluted Rivers in the World list. The river is contaminated with several kinds of heavy metals
and chemicals from tanneries, gold refineries, dumps and textile factories. It is one of 50 dead
rivers in the Philippines.
In another instance, a group of nine Filipino artists painted watercolor portraits with sterilized
pigments from six polluted rivers in Manila. The images painted are of everyday events,
children playing in the rivers, people in boats and families fishing. “The people who enjoy the
water are not aware of the dangers,” said Cid Reyes, the curator of the exhibit. Money made
from selling the pictures goes to clean the rivers, thus reducing water pollution in the
Philippines.

(Rhonda Marrone)
http://www.borgenmagazine.com/water-pollution-in-the-philippines/
 Imagine a world where a liter of water costs two or three times as much as a liter of
gasoline because our water supply has become so poisoned that there are very few sources of
freshwater left. Many people poke fun at this scenario, saying that it’s never going to happen,
but the reality is that it could happen sooner than we think. The pollution of the world’s
freshwater supply is already happening at an alarming rate, and if we do not take measures to
stop what’s happening, we could be facing a water scarcity crisis very soon.

Industry’s unfettered disposal of toxic materials and byproducts into our water supply plays a
huge role in the growing water crisis. In the Philippines alone, chemical pollution is quickly
taking its toll on our limited supply of fresh water. A lethal cocktail of hazardous chemicals are
being dumped daily into such major water sources as the Laguna Lake and the Pasig River. Data
from the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) of the Philippines showed that out of the
127 freshwater bodies that they sampled, 47% percent were found to have good water quality.
However, 40% of those sampled were found to have only fair water quality, while 13% showed
poor water quality.

Most alarming of all was a statement from then Environment Secretary Angelo Reyes that as
many as 50 of the 421 rivers in the Philippines are already considered “biologically dead.”
Biologically dead rivers no longer contain any oxygen and cannot support any but the hardiest
kinds of species. If this dangerous and toxic practice continues, a bleak, waterless landscape
may not be far from our country’s future.

What caused the widespread pollution of our wastewater?

The major sources of water pollution in the country are inadequately treated domestic
wastewater or sewage, agricultural wastewater, industrial wastewater, and non-point sources
such as rain- and groundwater runoff from solid waste or garbage deposits, which is also known
as leachate.

Here is a brief look at the pollutants found in each of the categories mentioned above:

1. Industrial wastewater: The kinds of pollutants found in industrial wastewater varies

according to the types of industries involved, but some common pollutants are
chromium, cadmium, lead, mercury, and cyanide. Non-point sources/leachate: The
same kinds of pollutants found in industrial wastewater can also be found in leachate.
2. Agricultural wastewater: This can include organic wastes such as decayed plants,
livestock manure, and dead animals, soil runoff due to erosion, and pesticides and
fertilizer residues. Domestic wastewater/sewage: This can
contain bacteria and viruses that can threaten or even be fatal to human life.
3. Other sources of water pollution include oil and/or chemical spills, mine tailings or spills,
and the illegal dumping of wastes in or near bodies of water.

Which areas of the country are most affected?

According to data from the Philippine Environment Monitor (PEM) and the EMB, four regions
had unsatisfactory ratings for their water quality criteria. These include the National Capital
Region (NCR) or Metro Manila, Southern Tagalog Region (Region IV), Central Luzon (Region III),
and Central Visayas (Region VII).

It is also useful to note that the Ilocos region (Region I) was found to be one of the highest
contributors to nitrate contamination.

http://www.greenpeace.org/seasia/ph/What-we-do/Toxics/Water-Patrol/The-problem/

Water is often equated with life itself. But for an archipelagic region in Southeast Asia
sandwiched between the Philippine Sea and the South China Sea, water pollution in the
Philippines has caused this precious resource to be anything but life’s sustenance. According to
a report released by the Asian Development Bank, “heavy inorganic pollutants have made
water increasingly a threat to life.”
A Threat to Life
The Philippines is a developing country that is also undergoing rapid urbanization and
industrialization. Out of more than one hundred million Filipinos, nine million rely on unsafe
water supplies. In fact, water pollution in the Philippines and a lack of proper sewage kills 55
people every day.
Katrina Arianne Ebora, part of UNICEF’s Water, Sanitation and Hygiene program in the
Philippines, notes that access to adequate sanitation facilities is a problem for more than 30
million Filipinos.

This portion of the population is forced to spend considerable time, effort and energy in
procuring water. Families without a sanitary toilet often face the embarrassment of venturing
outside to relieve themselves. Some resort to asking their neighbors to utilize their sanitary
toilet facilities.

Environmental group Greenpeace has previously warned that Filipinos in key agricultural areas
are drinking water contaminated with nitrates. After conducting a study on important farming
areas, Greenpeace warned that nitrate levels were alarmingly above the safety limits set by the
World Health Organization (WHO). The group also noted that “drinking water from 30
percent of all groundwater wells sampled in [the Philippines and Thailand] showed nitrates
levels above the WHO safety limit of 50 mg l-1 of nitrate.”

Water Shortage
Due to water pollution in the Philippines, the country is likely to face a shortage of water for
sanitation, drinking, agriculture and industrial purposes in the next ten years.
In an Asia Development Bank report, the Philippines’ regional group – which includes
Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam – has made gains in
improving water security. However, the region is home to a sixth of the global population and
the poorest people in the world. With agriculture consuming a staggering 80 percent of the
region’s water, the region is a global hotspot for water insecurity.

Water conservation efforts in the Philippines by many local and international companies have
protected the water supplies for future use. Coca-Cola has pledged nearly $1.4 million for a
five-year project with the World Wildlife Fund to protect the capital’s drinking water source,
the Ipo Watershed. The Cement Manufacturers’ Association of the Philippines, an industry that
heavily uses water, has started initiatives to capture and utilize rainwater for many production
needs.
Investing in Clean Water

In 2014, Water.org began providing philanthropic and technical support to offset water
pollution in the Philippines by expanding its WaterCredit program. Water.org’s statistics show
that 75 percent of Filipinos are willing to invest in water and sanitation loans. Between 2015 to
2017, the organization and its partners worked with eight different microfinance institutions to
conduct research and training in fulfilling the high demand for clean water and sanitation
access.

Experts have a consensus on the water improvement efforts in the country: the Philippines
government, environmental action groups, industries and locals need to work together on more
initiatives to avert the impending water crisis that may beset the region in the not-so-distant
future.

(Mohammed Khalid)
https://borgenproject.org/water-pollution-in-the-philippines/

UNEP chief scientist Jacqueline McGlade: 'Access to quality water is essential for human health
and human development. Both are at risk if we fail to stop the pollution'

MANILA BAYWALK. A man collects recyclable materials amongst the floating garbage at Manila
baywalk, washed ashore after tropical storm Nida passed through northern Philippines on
August 1, 2016. Photo by Ted Aljibe/ AFP
PARIS, France – Increasingly polluted rivers in Africa, Asia and Latin America pose a disease risk
to more than 300 million people and threaten fisheries and farming in many countries, a UN
report warned on Tuesday, August 30.

Already, some 3.4 million people die every year from water-borne ailments such as cholera,
typhoid, some types of hepatitis and diarrheal diseases, said the United Nations Environment
Program.

"Many of these diseases are due to the presence of human waste in water," it said in a
statement.

"The solution is not only to build more sewers but to treat wastewater."

The agency estimated that 164 million people were at risk of water-borne diseases in Africa,
134 million in Asia and 25 million in Latin America.

"The increasing amount of wastewater being dumped into our surface waters is deeply
troubling," said UNEP chief scientist Jacqueline McGlade.

"Access to quality water is essential for human health and human development. Both are at risk
if we fail to stop the pollution."

The rise is driven by factory waste, runoff from fertilisers and pesticides used in agriculture, as
well as an increase in untreated sewage discarded into rivers and lakes, the agency said.

"Severe pathogen pollution... is estimated to affect around a quarter of Latin American river
stretches," said the agency – up to a quarter in Africa and half in Asia.

In some countries, up to 90% of the population relies on rivers and lakes for drinking water, said
the report.

Freshwater fisheries, which employ some 21 million fishermen and create some 38.5 million
related jobs, are also at risk, while salinity pollution from dumped wastewater threatens
irrigated crops.

"There is still time to tackle water pollution," said the UNEP.

Polluted water must be treated before entering rivers or lakes, wastewater recycled for
irrigation, and wetlands restored to remove pollution from runoff water.
"It is now time to use these tools to combat what is slowly becoming one of the greatest
threats to human health and development around the world," said McGlade. – Rappler.com

(Agence-France-Presse)

https://www.rappler.com/science-nature/environment/144698-millions-risk-rising-water-
pollution-un

WATER POLLUTION IN THE PHILIPPINES: CAUSES AND SOLUTIONSI.

The Philippines or the Republic of the Philippines is a country comprised of 7,107 islands
in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific. The country is surrounded by water: the Luzon Strait,
the South China Sea, the Celebes Sea and the Philippine Sea. According to the United Nations,
uncontrolled, rapid growth of population has contributed to extreme poverty, environmental
degradation and pollution in the Philippines.

The article I’ve read states that the major problem encountered by the Philippines now
is the water pollution. The increased of population, urbanization, agriculture and
industrialization have all reduced the quality of water in the Philippines. According to the article
the government continues to try to clean up the problem, implementing fine to polluters as
well as environment taxes, but the problem still not solved. There are different organization
and people that tries to come up with different solution to help this problem.

Just like the Greenpeace Philippines and the World Bank they’ve come up with different
concepts that can help slowly resolving the problem. There are also group of nine Filipino artists
that painted watercolor portraits with sterilized pigments from six polluted rivers in
Manila. They made money by selling the portraits then the money they’ve collected goes to the
organizations that help clean the rivers, thus reducing the
water pollution in the Philippines.

(Seanie Reyes)

https://www.scribd.com/document/351870747/Water-Pollution-in-the-Philippines
 PUERTO PRINCESA CITY - Nakatakda na ring inspeksiyunin ng Department of
Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) ang Puerto Princesa Underground River bilang
bahagi ng paghihigpit nito sa pagpapatupad ng mga environmental laws.

Mahigpit na minomonitor ngayon ng DENR ang mga tourist destinations sa bansa. Inuna na ang
isla ng Boracay sa probinsya ng Aklan.

Sa Palawan, tinutukan ngayon ang bayan ng El Nido na susundan naman ng bayan ng Coron.

Pero ang Sitio Sabang, Barangay Cabayungan na nakakasakop sa Puerto Princesa Underground
River, nakatakda na ring isama sa listahan ng iinspeksyunin.

"Sa March 8 kami ay naka-schedule na talagang sukatin yung from the highest tide going to the
allowed na area natin which is 30 meters from the highest tide. Lahat yan from tip to tip ng Sitio
Sabang," ani ni Elizabeth Maclang, Park Superintendent ng Underground River.

Una na rin umanong nagkaroon ng clearing sa dalampasigan ng Sitio Sabang kung saan inalis
ang ilang mga kubol at mga tindahan.

Kampante naman daw ang pamunuan ng Underground River na muling susunod ang mga
negosyante sa lugar.

Samantala, hindi naman umano dapat ikabahala na madumi ang tubig dagat sa lugar dahil
pasado naman daw ito sa water testing ng DENR.

Noong 2017 ay mayroon itong 700mpn (most probable number) ng coliform na mas mababa sa
1600mpn na tolerable limit ng DENR.

Ayon sa Palawan Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office, magpapatuloy na ang
ganitong mga paghihigpit at monitoring sa buong Palawan.

(Diana Lat)

http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/03/06/18/mga-establisimyento-sa-paligid-ng-puerto-princesa-
underground-river-iinspeksiyunin-rin
A girl plays in a garbage-filled river in Navotas on Monday. Plastic pollution has been a
perennial problem in the Philippines with environmental groups calling for the regulation of
single-use plastics to address the issue

(Dondi Tawatao)

http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/multimedia/photo/01/16/18/troubled-waters

Cavite takes action against water pollution

Trece Martires City, Cavite – Local government authorities in this city have started efforts
to clean rivers in the lowland and upland districts of the province following reports that some
tributaries are contaminated by waste and toxic chemicals.

Engineer Rolinio P. Pozas, head of the Provincial Government-Environment and Natural

Resources Office (PG-ENRO), confirmed that river water clean-up was intensified this year.

River dredging and clearing operations were relaunched in Bacoor District in January as a course
of action against floods and pollution in the area.

During the launch, waste traps were installed along waterways bounding several barangays
(villages) in the district.
One of the notable pieces of evidence of water pollution in the province were the “fish kills” in
Rosario municipality in 2014 and 2015.

Initial findings showed that human waste, toxic waste, and lack of water oxygen as the causes of
the “fish kills” in the municipality. Some factories and residential houses along the river, among
others, were suspected to be main sources of pollutants.

The Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office, Export Processing Zone Authority, and
the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources conducted separate investigations but have yet to
reveal the exact pollution source until this day.

In an interview on Friday (Feb. 10), Pozas confirmed that the waters in one river in the province
was found to have coliform bacteria and that he suspected that a sewage being placed beside
the riverside as the main “culprit.”

The PG-ENRO chief said monitoring, water testing and treatment are being conducted regularly
every year. He also said more waterway measures, including the trash trap installation, will also
be implemented starting 2017.

In the same interview, Pozas also said not all tap water in the province are safe for drinking. He
said it would be best to boil the tap water first prior to drinking.

(Anthony Giron)

https://news.mb.com.ph/2017/02/15/cavite-takes-action-against-water-pollution/