New permit allows mall to uproot 182 trees: Court stops project; SM officials comply

By Alfred Dizon and Aileen P. Refuerzo

BAGUIO CITY –Shoemart Corp. has put on hold its development project here following a court order even as

government revised the environment permit it issued and allowed the mall to uproot 182 trees covered by its expansion plan.

            “SM has stopped earth-balling trees in deference to an order of the Baguio regional trial court, branch 5, which extended the temporary environmental protection order (TEPO) it issued earlier,”said Karren N. Padilla, SM press relations officer here.

            Padilla said no trees were cut contrary to allegations of activists opposed to the cutting as revealed in a monitoring visit in the area Wednesday participated in by government, nongovernment and media members.

            But Padilla said 42 alnus trees were uprooted and transferred including one pine tree.

            This, even as Kabataan Partylist Rep. Raymond Palatino with youth groups trooped to the Environment Department office in Quezon City last week to urge DENR Secretary Ramon Paje to immediately revoke the permit granted to SM Baguio allowing “massacre” of close to 200 trees for its expansion project.

            President Benigno Aquino III earlier ordered a review of the ongoing construction here known as the  city of pines.

            Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo said representatives of SM, state agencies and non-government groups agreed on the revision of the permit during a meeting in Camp Crame in Quezon City last week. 

            The previous permit allowed the company to earth-ball only 142 trees and cut the remaining 40 in a 1.1-hectare property. 

            “The modification (of the permit) will give the 40 trees a chance to live,” Robredo told a press briefing.  

            The new permit also requires SM to plant 50,000 trees in three years, instead of only 5,000 trees as provided under a previous permit.

            Robredo said the trees may be planted in Baguio and Benguet. 

            Environment groups and activists have criticized the management of SM Baguio for its supposed plan to cut 182 trees to expand the mall. 

            SM Group, however, denied that it would cut the trees and claimed that it would merely earth-ball or transfer the 182 trees to another area. 

            Robredosaid failure to satisfy the requirements of the new permit would lead to its revocation. 

            SM Group officials, representatives of four non-government organizations, local officials and experts from University of the Philippines- Los Baños attended the meeting.

            In the  multi-sectoral meeting Monday on the controversial extension project of SM presided over by Robredo, Paje explained that earth-balling is a procedure where the tree together with its root ball is carefully excavated, wrapped and transferred.

            Apart from Paje and Robredo, also present in the meeting were DENR-Cordillera Administrative Region director Clarence Baguilat, Baguio City Mayor Mauricio Domogan, Baguio Rep. Bernardo Vergara, and Virgilio Bautista of the Baguio Regional Development Council.

SM City Baguio was represented by Hans Sy, president of SM Prime Holdings Inc.; Annie Garcia, president of SM Supermalls; and Bien Mateo, VP for operations.

            The group opposed to the earth-balling of trees was represented by lawyer Cheryl Daytec-Yangot.

            SM reiterated its commitment to comply with all the conditions set forth by the permits issued to it and also gave assurance that it will respect any court decision on the matter.

            SM also reiterated that it did not violate the TEPO issued by the court last April 9, as charged by its critics.

            It said it did not receive the TEPO immediately and it was only when it asked a representative to go to the court to pick up a copy of the TEPO last April 11 that it was able to secure a copy.

            Immediately the earthballing operation was reportedly stopped.

            Over at the city council, Councilor IsabeloCosalan Jr. proposed a resolution urging concerned city offices to withdraw the permits and clearances issued to SM Prime Holdings for the mall’s expansion project in the city.

            In his measure, Cosalan sought to urge the city building and architecture and the environment and parks management offices to take back the permits and clearances as the proposed expansion project “does not conform to the city land use plan and zoning ordinance.”

            He also asked the SM firm to “reconsider their development plan and institute the necessary adjustments to comply with the city’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan and Zoning Ordinance.”

            Cosalan said Sections 9 and 11 of Ordinance numbered 051, series of 2001 zoned Luneta Hill, which is a portion of Session Road and within the Central Business District as Low Density Commercial Zone or C-1.

“The existing use of SM Super Mall is that which is defined under a Medium and High Density Commercial Zones (C-2 and C-3), the enumerated use provided in Section 10 to wit: ‘G. High Density Commercial Zone (C-3); 1.  All uses allowed in C-1 and C-2;2. Regional shopping centers, e.g. large malls; xxx’; ‘F. Medium Density Commercial Zone (C-2) xxx 21.parking lots, garage facilities xxx’,” Cosalan stressed.

            He said that in its plan submitted and as reflected in its Certificate of Zoning Compliance and Building Permit, SM planned to construct a Parking Building and SM Mall Expansion over an additional area of 19,401 square meters parcel of land.

            “The existing SM Super Mall appears to be an existing non-conforming building subject to Section 29 of the same Zoning Ordinance which provides, “1. That no such non-conforming use shall be enlarged or extended to occupy a greater area of land than that already occupied by such use at the time of the adoption of this Ordinance or moved, in whole or in part, to any other portion of the lot or parcel of land where such non-conforming use exists at the time of adoption of this Ordinance,” Cosalan pointed out.

            He said Resolution Numbered 256, series of 2010 was approved on the premise, among others, that “implementing a temporary moratorium on the acceptance and processing of applications for exceptions, variances or deviations from the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance for the City of Baguio, pending the finalization of the updated CLUP is necessary to avoid/minimize the proliferation of non-conforming uses and structures that may cause inconsistencies of zoning/land use in the new CLUP.”

            Cosalan said the zoning administrator has the authority to issue locational clearances while the approval of development permits including the issuance of Certification of Zoning Compliance or Local Clearance has been devolved to the local government.   

            He said these issuances needed to be withdrawn in view of the need to preserve the trees that are affected by the expansion project.