BAGUIO CITY – The City Council approved on first reading a proposed ordinance that seeks to introduce amendments to several provisions of Ordinance No. 18, series of 2016, otherwise known as the City’s Environment Code.
The ordinance authored by Vice Mayor Faustino A. Olowan states that couples intending to marry in the city shall be prevailed upon to plant at least 1 tree at a place designated by the City Environment and Parks Management Office (CEPMO) before the issuance of their marriage license.
The CEPMO personnel shall supervise the planting of trees and shall certify thereafter to the Civil Registry Office that the said provision of the Environment Code had been complied with, which certification shall be the pre-requisite before a marriage license shall be issued.
Further, a certification fee amounting to P100 shall be collected for the aforesaid purpose.
The ordinance added that coordination and information on all activities related to the same shall be coursed through the CEPMO.
On the other hand, another amendment introduced in the City’s Environment Code include the provision that upon approval of the permit to cut, retrieve, or remove a tree or trees, the permittee is required to pay a permit fee of P700 per cubic meter, or a fraction thereof based on the tree to be cut, retrieved or removed.
Moreover, payment shall be made with the City Treasury Office to ensure the proper documentation of the payments that are being made relative to the same.
However, national and city government agencies are exempted from the payment of fees for the cutting, retrieval and removal of trees.
Part of the proposed amendments include provision on logs, lumber, timber and firewood to be transported must be covered with a transport permit with supporting documents such as certificate of timber of origin and tree cutting permit.
The ordinance stipulates that the permit to transport must be signed and issued by the City Mayor’s Office upon recommendation of the forest officers of the first and watershed division of the CEPMO.
According to the proposed amendatory ordinance, permit to transport shall be charged with a fee of P300 for every cubic meter or a fraction thereof and that the payment for the same shall be made at the City Treasury office.
The ordinance notes that the fees being collected by the city government have remained the lowest in comparison to those being collected by other highly urbanized cities and even first class municipalities in the different parts of the region.
Olowan claimed that to support the increasing cost of seedlings and to maintain and upgrade its public service operations, there is a need for the city government to impose increased rates as requested by no less than the implement office of the City’s Environment code.
The proposed ordinance was referred by the members of the city legislative body to the appropriate committee for study and recommendation.
By Dexter A. See