THE Bacolod City Water District (Baciwa) has filed the motion for reconsideration last week on the decision of the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) to cease and desist the operation of its 14 wells without a water permit.
Lawyer Lorendo Dilag, chairman of Baciwa Board, said they filed the motion because Baciwa feels that it has no basis.
"Most of this 14 wells have applications, but way back two years ago, the said application has not yet been approved," he said.
He added that Baciwa could not be faulted for the non-approval of the permit.
On November 10, 2017, the NWRB issued a cease and desist order (CDO) to Baciwa on the operation of its 14 deep wells without water permits.
The complaint was filed by concerned citizen John Sy against the management of Baciwa in 2016.
The NWRB order stated that Baciwa is appropriating/utilizing 14 deep well sources without the benefit of water permits from the NWRB in violation of Article 13 of the Water Code of the Philippines.
Dilag said the matter was referred to the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC) and they had filed their motion in Manila.
Of the 14 deep wells, four have water permits, eight have a water permit applications pending with NWRB, one was abandoned and the other one is a well turned over by the city government to the water district, he said.
Moreover, Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) Administrator Jeci Lapuz, who was in Bacolod yesterday, assured the Baciwa management that he will help them to get a positive reply from NWRB to reconsider their appeal.
