Water Policy in the Philippines

This chapter provides the context, setting and framework of water policy analysis for this volume. It gives an introduction to the state of water resources in the Philippines, supply and demand situation and the extent of pollution of water bodies. It presents the framework of analysis that guided the discussion in the book. The framework showcases the water supply sustainability issues vis a vis the growing demand and the needed policy support to make this happen. Factors identified to drive water scarcity are the increasing population and urbanization, weak institutional arrangements in the water sector, lack of policy instruments and weak implementation of environmental policies and laws. The last part outlines the organization of the book.

This chapter synthesizes the existing information and knowledge on the state of water resources in the Philippines by providing a general overview on water supply, demand and uses at the national level. The major sources of water, namely surface and ground water, will be examined in terms of its adequacy considering present and future supply based available studies and projections. Similarly, the demand side will be analyzed considering the sectoral needs and priorities in relation to the present and projected future water supply. Major drivers of change that are likely to shape the water supply and demand scenarios such as demographic shifts, urbanization, and climate change will be highlighted in the analysis. The chapter concludes with the analysis of the gap in the water supply and demand and its implications on the water governance of the country.

The chapter maps the array of formal arrangements between water apex bodies, national government agencies, local government units and water organizations with mandates on water supply and demand management. Institutional arrangements are complex, multilayered and fragmented, with duplication of tasks such as planning and monitoring, whilst few are involved in operations and financing. Local government units directly operate facilities and replicate the work of water apex bodies, which have no local presence. The role of the state is central as owner of property rights to water, regulator and subsidy provider. Despite increasing private sector participation in water provisioning mainly in urban centers, many rural and village-level waterworks continue to rely on grants from the government for crucial infrastructure, operations and management funds. The government uses water permits, subsidy, legal requirements for inter-sector transfer, and penalties for pollution as policy instruments. However, serious gaps remain as mechanisms are not fully articulated in order to meet social equity and resource sustainability goals. The outcomes are highly localized, politically contingent, and diverse water governance schemes. Select cases illustrate how the absence of clear property rights and rules for orderly contracting lead to political mobilization for preferred outcomes, local social arrangements, and water pricing innovations.

The legal framework on domestic household water use and sanitation specifically mandates the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System to engage in capital infrastructure and water distribution in Metro Manila. On the other hand, the water districts and municipal-government-administered water works play a key role in the supply, distribution, and management at the local level. Historically, these water institutions have paid less attention to sanitation and have focused more on water provisioning. Insufficient public investments and mismanagement have led to serious gaps in performance. The patterns of water use in the domestic household sector follow the country’s demographic distribution where urban and town centers are favored infrastructure-wise over rural and urbanizing areas. This chapter identifies the inefficiencies, the gaps in access by the poor, and the poor participation by consumers in water district schemes in urban areas. It also describes the challenges of rural villages distant from town centers that remain underserved or with crude water provisioning schemes. Urbanizing areas suffer from competing uses between households and small-scale industries and the attendant pollution arising from unregulated wastewater-dumping activities. Incipient attempts at reform either at the community or local government level toward improving domestic household water use and sanitation are mapped out.

This chapter characterizes the state of Philippine water policy as it relates to the industrial sector and compares it with those of ASEAN countries. The water consumption profiles (source and quantity) of major industries are described, with a focus on those with large water footprints (e.g., oils and chemicals, food and beverages) to assess relative potential to cause water pollution. From water generation and pollution load profiles of the industrial sector, the wastewater characteristics of major industries are evaluated. A review of government regulations related to the prevention and control of water pollution, their state of implementation, and the degree of compliance/non-compliance by the industrial sector are presented. Using three environmental water pollution events as cases (nickel and chromium mining in Sta. Cruz, Zambales; gold mining in Padcal, Benguet Province, and the biophysical deterioration of the Marilao-Meycauayan-Obando river system due to factory effluents), the difficulties in the implementation of environmental laws, which lead to water pollution and great public health impacts, are explored.

This chapter discusses the role of water management and governance in agriculture as it affects irrigation and agricultural productivity. The governance framework discusses the various actors involved in water in agriculture and the policy environment, which, in turn, affect the irrigation development performance. The country’s performance in agricultural water management is assessed in terms of area irrigated by public investments, cropping intensity, collection efficiency, and productivity impact. To improve performance and agricultural productivity, the major challenges facing national and communal irrigation systems are identified. These challenges require policy changes to address poor performance, unsustainability of systems, and weak management capacities.

This chapter describes the state of Philippine aquaculture resources, water quality, and other water-related concerns of the sector. In the process, the current formal and informal policy environment is discussed and evaluated. The institutional and regulatory framework described in the chapter is characterized as the product of incremental changes and developments over the years. It is also described as a reflection of the multiplicity of institutions involved, all with different hierarchical coverage, varied mandates, and representing the interest of diverse constituencies. Key problems and concerns in the aquaculture and water sectors are presented using a governance perspective. It was observed that many laws and regulations remain unenforced due to inconsistencies and lack of capacity to monitor resources and enforce laws. Also, the level of participation of diverse and multi-level partners toward sustainable aquaculture development is wanting. The challenge posed by climate change is also an urgent concern. The chapter ends with a set of general policy recommendations for the improvement of the sector.

This chapter discusses multiple and integrated water resource utilization in the Philippines. Multiple use can be provided by multipurpose water systems such as reservoirs for domestic water supply, irrigation, hydropower generation, and flood control function, including water quality control function. To discuss the status, issues and problems of multiple use water system, four systems in the Philippines are showcased, namely: the Angat and San Roque Reservoirs as well as the Laguna Lake and Agusan River systems. Being multiple use, some of these water resource systems may have competing or conflicting water uses due to differing socio-economic objectives (e.g., Laguna Lake and Angat Reservoir) and even due to the physical configuration of the components of the system (e.g., hydropower plants in the Angat Reservoir). On the other hand, complementary water use occurs such as the case of hydropower generation when the same irrigation or domestic water supply releases passes through hydropower plants such as in San Roque and Angat Reservoirs. At the end of this chapter, suggestions and recommendations for harmonizing or complementing multiple water resource utilization together with land use management are described in terms of policies and management strategies to achieve effective multiple and integrated water resource utilization.

This chapter focuses on past and current policies (including programs) on environmental protection and how these policies facilitate or constrain the implementation of policy actions to promote the sustainability of water resources in the Philippines. Alongside water policies, policies on land use management and allocation, forestry, agriculture, natural resource management, and pollution control are examined with respect to its expected outputs versus actual outputs and impacts. Cases of synergy and conflicts of environmental and water policies and what attempts were made to achieve concurrently environmental protection and sustainable water resources are presented. The chapter concludes by drawing out policy recommendations from the best practices and lessons learned from past experiences. Specifically, key policies and programs related to sustainable agriculture and food security, forest and biodiversity conservation, land use planning and management, environmental impact assessment, climate change adaptation and mitigation, and soil conservation, among others, are examined. The National Integrated Protected Areas Systems (NIPAS Law), the National Greening Program, and the Solid Waste Management Act are some of the key policies and programs that are reviewed in this chapter.

This chapter discusses the national and local initiatives towards improving water management in the Philippines beginning with action plan to reform the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) in 1995, the development of the National Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) Plan Framework in 2006, followed by the Integrated River Basin Management and Development (IRBMD) Master Plan spearheaded by Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in 2007 to integrate past framework plans and development of strategies for sustainable river basin ecosystem management. In 2010, the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) together with NWRB spearheaded the development of the Philippine Water Supply Sector Roadmap which recommended policy directions and institutional reforms to further strengthen NWRB and to organize a coherent, transparent and independent economic regulatory framework and as a follow up, NEDA with DOH developed the Philippine Sustainable Sanitation Roadmap in the same year. In 2011, the National Sewerage and Septage Management Program (NSSMP) was prepared by DPWH as mandated by the Clean Water Act. Despite all these framework and action plans, there is lack of strong leadership and coordination to ensure efficient and effective management of the country’s water resources, since there are more than 30 agencies with water related powers causing overlaps and fragmentation. This chapter ends with recent initiatives and recommendations on how to reform and transition from a fragmented and uncoordinated sector to one that is efficient, effective and sustainable in managing the country’s water resources.

The chapter reviews and examines water-related program interventions–social, economic, institutional–that have directly and indirectly influenced water demand management in the Philippines since 2000. Demand focuses on water users and the human dimensions of water use, including degradation of water quality, excessive drawing from aquifers, non-consumptive uses of water, and the organizations that have evolved to represent the various stakeholders. The chapter then examines the feasibility of the emergent emphasis on policies that stress making better use of existing supplies in combination with decentralization and participation of water users, even as new sources are explored. Initiatives by the Department of Interior and Local Government toward expanding water access in areas not served by municipal water districts, participatory management schemes for irrigation associations by the National Irrigation Administration, and intersectoral formation for surface water/river quality management by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources are probed. The chapter describes initiatives such as intermunicipal water transfers, independent community-based collective arrangements for domestic and irrigation provisioning (through cooperatives) and riparian upstream-downstream coalitions for water quality in select locality cases. Such policies and interventions aim to influence demand along principles of efficiency, equity, and sustainability. This chapter explores the application of water-demand programs by select national government agencies to their respective client-groups. The institutional arrangements thus created by these program applications are “grey area” because they are not as yet grounded on water rights or adequately covered in the existing Philippine Water Code. But they portend to better/improved ways by which water can be more equitably accessed.

This final chapter discusses key findings of the book; one significant finding, among others, is that the Philippines will suffer from an impending water crisis if institutions were not strengthened. Sectoral issues are also summarized. Challenges and ways forward are discussed.