• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Some 132 families residing inside the Mt. Kanlaon protected zone, who engage in farming, may face charges if they will not vacate the area, an official of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said on Thursday.
DENR-Negros Island Region Regional Director Charlie Fabre said they will send letters to the 132 families, urging them to voluntarily vacate the four-kilometer permanent danger zone (PDZ).
The Mt. Kanlaon danger zone has been transformed into an agricultural production area instead of being a forest, he said.
The provincial government has already purchased a land for the relocation site of the affected residents in La Castellana, Negros Occidental.
Fabre said some of the affected families are residents of Canlaon City in Negros Oriental.
DENR investigation showed that a large portion of Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park is composed of open barren areas and grassland, and planted with assorted agricultural crops, which cannot hold large amount of torrential rains.
“If they will not vacate, we have the option to file a case against them for illegal occupation in a protected area,” Fabre said. | GB
