sic itur ad astra

Natural Resources Law | Fisheries Act Tinga, J: Recit Ver: The Metro Iloilo Water District (MIWD) , established under Presidential Decree No. 198 and holding a Conditional Certificate of Conformance from the Local Water Utilities Administration since 1979, covers several areas in Iloilo, including the city and neighboring municipalities. In 1993, MIWD filed nine petitions for injunction against private respondents who were extracting groundwater within MIWD's jurisdiction without proper permits. MIWD claimed that this extraction violated its regulations, approved by the National Water Resources Council (NWRC), as well as the Water Code of the Philippines (Presidential Decree No. 1067). The private respondents countered, arguing the case was within the exclusive jurisdiction of the NWRC, not the trial courts, because it involved water appropriation and utilization. MIWD claimed that the case does not involve a dispute over water rights appropriation but concerns the enforcement of r...

Natural Resources Law | Fisheries Act Hermosisima, J: Recit Ver: Republic Act No. 48 5 0 established the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) to oversee the development and balanced growth of the Laguna Lake region. LLDA has the exclusive authority to issue permits for lake water use, including navigation, fishpens, and other activities. They also collect fees, which are shared with local governments and other agencies. Local municipalities, after the enactment of Republic Act No. 7160 (Local Government Code of 1991), believed they had exclusive rights to issue fishing permits, conflicting with LLDA's authority. This led to unregulated fishpen expansions, aggravating environmental stress in Laguna de Bay. In response to illegal fishpens and environmental concerns, LLDA moved to dismantle unauthorized structures. This led to a series of local fishpen owners who sought injunctions against LLDA. The LLDA petitioned the Supreme Court to assert its exclusive permit authority. The ...