PAREB-Cebu REALTORS Board, Inc.

39TH Comprehensive Real Estate CPE Seminar & Review

Oct Nov 2010 & Jan 2011
Principles of Ecology and Land Use
1
BASIC PRINCIPLES OF ECOLOGY, URBAN AND RURAL LAND USE, PLANNING
DEVELOPMENT AND ZONING
I. ECOLOGY
Ecology (from Greek: , oikos, "household"; and , logos, "knowledge") is the
scientific study of the distribution and abundance of life and the interactions between
organisms and their environment.
The word "ecology" is often used more loosely in such terms in common parlance as a
synonym for the natural environment or environmentalism.
A. Law on creation of DENR
Executive Order No. 192 dated June 10, 1987
Providing for the Reorganization of the Department of Environment, Energy and Natural
Resources, Renaming it as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and
for other Purposes
The Department is mandated to be the primary agency responsible for the conservation,
management, development, and proper use of the countrys environment and natural
resources.
To accomplish this mandate, the Department shall be guided by the following objectives:
1. Assure the availability and sustainability of the country's natural resources through
judicious use and systematic restoration or replacement, whenever possible;
2. Increase the productivity of natural resources in order to meet the demands for forest,
mineral, and land resources of a growing population;
3. Enhance the contribution of natural resources for achieving national economic and
social development;
4. Promote equitable access to natural resources by the different sectors of the
population;
5. Conserve specific terrestrial and marine areas representative of the Philippine natural
and cultural heritage for present and future generations.
B. Terms - Definition
1. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT ( EIA )
An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a "process that involves predicting and
evaluating the likely impacts of a project (including cumulative impacts) on the
environment during construction, commissioning, operation and abandonment.
It also includes designing appropriate preventive, mitigating and enhancement measures
addressing these consequences to protect the environment and the community's
welfare".
2. ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE
PAREB-Cebu REALTORS Board, Inc.
39TH Comprehensive Real Estate CPE Seminar & Review
Oct Nov 2010 & Jan 2011

Principles of Ecology and Land Use

2
A certificate of Environmental Compliance Commitment to which the Proponent conforms
with, after DENR-EMB explains the ECC conditions, by signing the sworn undertaking of
full responsibility over implementation of specified measures which are necessary to
comply with existing environmental regulations or to operate within best environmental
practices that are not currently covered by existing laws.
Contents of an ECC
An ECC shall contain specific measures and conditions that the project Proponent has to
undertake before and during the operation of a project, and in some cases, during the
projects abandonment phase to mitigate identified environmental impacts.
In general, the following are salient features of an ECC:
Scope of project or undertaking
Conditions conformed with by the Proponent to implement the mitigation
measures for potentially negative impacts and/or enhancement measures for
potentially positive impacts as identified in the EIA Report.
Suggestions/recommendations to assist LGUs and other agencies of the
government to incorporate the EIA Results in their decision-making process.
3. CERTIFICATE OF NON-COVERAGE ( CNC )
A Certificate of Non-Coverage (CNC) is issued by the EMB certifying that, based on the
submitted project description, the project is not covered by the EIS System and is not
required to secure an environmental compliance certificate or ECC
4. Environmentally Critical Project (ECP)
Projects belonging to project types declared thru Proclamation No. 2146 and
Proclamation No. 803 which may pose significant negative environmental impact at
certain thresholds of operation regardless of location.
Updating of technical descriptions of ECPs is vested on the DENR-EMB thru Section 2-D
of AO 42 (2002), in coordination with the DTI as provided for in Section 3-A of AO 42.
5. ENVIRONMENTALLY CRITICAL AREA ( ECA )
A general area declared thru Proclamation 2146 as environmentally sensitive such that
significant environmental impacts are expected if certain types/thresholds of proposed
projects are located, developed or implemented in it.
Updating of technical descriptions of ECAs is vested on the DENR-EMB thru Section 2-D
of AO 42 (2002).
II. URBAN AND RURAL LAND USE, PLANNING DEVELOPMENT
AND ZONING
PAREB-Cebu REALTORS Board, Inc.
39TH Comprehensive Real Estate CPE Seminar & Review
Oct Nov 2010 & Jan 2011
Principles of Ecology and Land Use
3
LAND USE PLANNING
Laws that Ensure Rational Land Use and Sustainable Urban and Regional Development
Executive Order No. 72 - Providing for the Preparation and Implementation of
the Comprehensive Land Use Plans of Local Government Units Pursuant to the

Local Government Code of 1991 and Other Pertinent Laws

Memorandum Circular No. 54 - Prescribing the Guidelines of Sec. 20, R.A.
7160, Authorizing Cities/Municipalities to Reclassify Lands into Non-Agricultural
Uses
Executive Order No. 124 - Establishing Priorities and Procedures in Evaluating
Areas for Land Conversion in Regional Agricultural/Industrial Centers, Tourism
Development Areas Sites for Socialized Housing
LAND USE PLANNING
Land-use planning is a dynamic, evolving field that emerged out of the convergence of
two concerns:
o The provision of urban infrastructure; and
o Social reform through land-use planning.
Today land-use planning has expanded to include the development, implementation and
evaluation of a wide range of policies, while at the same time continuing its underlying
focus on community well-being. Urban and regional planners, in both developing and
developed countries, are specifically concerned with:
o Land use planning and management, especially between rural and urban uses,
in coastal zones, among contemporary urban functions, and with regard to urban
form;
o Environmental management and risk management in hazard prone areas;
o The design of the municipality/city and harmonization of conflicts with the
surrounding region;
o Regional planning, with particular interest in global-local interaction, uneven landuse
development, industrial location and regional economic growth;
o The identification of social needs and the design and provision of services and
facilities to meet these needs;
o The distribution of benefits and costs of resource allocation and use among
people;
o Citizen participation in planning; and
o Decision making processes, policy and program evaluation.
Comprehensive Land Use Plan
LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE
(c) The local government units shall, in conformity with existing laws, continue to prepare
their respective comprehensive land use plans enacted through zoning ordinances which
shall be the primary and dominant bases for the future use of land resources: Provided.
That the requirements for food production, human settlements, and industrial expansion
shall be taken into consideration in the preparation of such plans. (Sec. 20, RA 7160)
Reclassification of Lands. PAREB-Cebu REALTORS Board, Inc.
39TH Comprehensive Real Estate CPE Seminar & Review
Oct Nov 2010 & Jan 2011
Principles of Ecology and Land Use
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(a) A city or municipality may, through an ordinance passed by the sanggunian after
conducting public hearings for the purpose, authorize the reclassification of agricultural

lands and provide for the manner of their utilization or disposition in the following cases:
(1) when the land ceases to be economically feasible and sound for agricultural purposes
as determined by the Department of Agriculture or (2) where the land shall have
substantially greater economic value for residential, commercial, or industrial purposes,
as determined by the sanggunian concerned: Provided, That such reclassification shall
be limited to the following percentage of the total agricultural land area at the time of the
passage of the ordinance: x x x.
(b) The President may, when public interest so requires and upon recommendation of
the National Economic and Development Authority, authorize a city or municipality to
reclassify lands in excess of the limits set in the next preceding paragraph.