Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu on Tuesday assured his department would continue to ensure air quality amid concerns about the impact of coal-fired power plants on the environment and public health.
Environmental advocates led by the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice earlier petitioned the Supreme Court to compel the Environment and Energy Departments to strictly regulate the operations of coal-fired power plants in the country.
Cimatu said a part of the DENR’s mandate was to make sure that environmental laws, including Republic Act No. 8749 or the Philippine Clean Air Act of 1999, were fully implemented.
“Intensive enforcement will continue to be a tool used by the DENR to carry out its mandate from the people to improve the quality of air we breathe,” Cimatu said.