MODULE 1

Acid Rain

A multimedia pollution problem from the emission of sulfur and nitrogen oxides, which wash out of the atmosphere, polluting water and changing soil chemistry.

Administrative Liability (Environmental)

Liability determined by regulators (like DENR), including permit revocation and clean-up orders. It is determined by "substantial evidence."

Air Resource Management

The balance of cost and benefit to obtain a desired quality of air, with the objective of protecting health and welfare.

Asbestos Regulation (Philippines)

Regulated under the Toxic Substances Act; requires permits for use/disposal and a worker exposure threshold limit value (TLV) of 0.1 fibre per cubic centimeter of air.

Citizen's Suit

A legal action under the Rules of Procedure for Environmental Cases, allowing any Filipino citizen to file a case for violations of environmental laws.

Civil Code Article 20

Imposes civil liability on a person who, contrary to law, wilfully or negligently causes damage to another.

Civil Code Article 21

Imposes civil liability on a person who wilfully causes loss or injury to another in a manner contrary to morals, good customs, or public policy.

Civil Code Article 2176

Provides for payment of damages due to quasi-delict (an act or omission causing damage due to fault or negligence with no prior contractual relation).

Civil Liability (Environmental)

Liability imposed by courts including indemnification for damages and clean-up. It is determined by "preponderance of evidence."

Class Suit

A lawsuit allowed when the subject matter is of common interest to persons so numerous that it's impracticable to join them all as parties.

Clean Air Act (Philippines)

A law that promotes environmentally-sound technologies, requires permits for air pollution sources, and mandates the publication of hazardous pollutant standards.

Clean Water Act (Philippines)

A law that mandates the conservation of all water bodies, regulates pollution from land-based sources, and requires discharge permits.

Climate Change Act (Philippines)

A law that aims to provide interventions to address anthropogenic emissions of all greenhouse gases.

Comply or Explain Approach

An approach used by the SEC for the first three years of sustainability reporting, allowing companies to explain why certain data is not yet available.

Continuing Liability Clause

A contract provision stating that liability or obligations accrued during the contract term will subsist even after the contract is terminated. A key focus of environmental due diligence.

Corporate Liability (Criminal)

In principle, cannot be directly imposed on a corporation since only natural persons can be imprisoned, though the corporation may be fined.

Criminal Liability (Environmental)

Liability imposed by courts carrying penalties of fines and/or imprisonment. It is determined by "proof beyond reasonable doubt."

DENR

Department of Environment and National Resources; the primary executive agency in the Philippines for conservation, management, and proper use of the country's environment and natural resources.

Distribution System (Water)

The network of pipes (water mains) in a city that delivers treated water to consumers, typically kept at a pressure between 200 and 860 kPa.

ECC

Environmental Compliance Certificate; a document from the DENR certifying a project has complied with the EIS system requirements.

ECAs

Environmentally Critical Areas; a classification for specific areas where projects are scrutinized under the Philippine EIS system.

Ecological Solid Waste Management Act

A Philippine law ensuring proper waste management and mandating local governments to create Solid Waste Management Plans (SWMP).

ECPs

Environmentally Critical Projects; a classification for projects with significant adverse environmental impact under the Philippine EIS system.

EIA

Environmental Impact Assessment; a process to reduce adverse environmental impacts through review of project siting, design, alternatives, and formulation of management/monitoring plans.

EIS

Environmental Impact Statement; a document detailing a project's environmental impact, required for all organizations (government and private) undertaking projects with major impacts.

EMB

Environmental Management Bureau; a bureau within the DENR with jurisdiction over environmental management, pollution prevention, and environmental assessment.

Environmental Due Diligence

The process of investigating a company or property to assess environmental liabilities and risks, often before a commercial transaction like an M&A.

Environmental Engineering

A profession applying math and science to solve problems of environmental sanitation, including water supply, waste disposal, and pollution control.

Environmental Ethics

A framework of values arising from concern for long-term survival and the recognition that humans share the earth with other forms of life.

Environmental Insurance

Insurance that covers risks and exposures caused by pollution, including bodily injury, property damage, legal representation, and clean-up costs.

Environmental Management System (EMS)

A set of processes and practices that enable an organization to reduce its environmental impacts and increase its operating efficiency.

Environmental Ombudsman

An office in the Philippines established to investigate violations of environmental laws by any public official, employee, or agency.

Ethos

The Greek word for 'ethic', meaning the character of a person as described by their actions.

Exemplary or Punitive Damages

Damages awarded "by way of example or correction for the public good" at the discretion of the court, usually in cases of gross negligence or wanton conduct.

Factors Influencing Water Consumption

Major factors include: 1. Climate, 2. Industrial activity, 3. Meterage, 4. System management, 5. Standard of living.

Fortuitous Events

A legal defense under civil law where liability may be mitigated or excused if the damage was caused solely by events beyond the control of the alleged polluter.

Freedom of Information (Environmental)

The constitutional right of people to information on matters of public concern, implemented in executive agencies by an executive order. Access is not absolute and has an inventory of exceptions.

GHS

Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals; an international standard adopted by the Philippines to define and communicate chemical hazards.

Green Jobs Act

A law providing fiscal incentives, such as tax deductions for training expenses and duty-free importation of equipment, to businesses that generate "green jobs".

Green Taxes

Taxes levied on environmentally harmful activities. The Philippines does not currently have these but provides fiscal incentives instead.

Greenhouse Gas Reduction Target (Philippines)

A conditional 70% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 from the energy, transport, waste, forestry, and industry sectors, as stated in the 2015 INDC.

Groundwater

Water sources pumped from wells.

INDC

Intended Nationally Determined Contribution; a country's climate action plan submitted under the UNFCCC.

Infiltration and Inflow (Sewer)

The leakage of groundwater into a sewer system (infiltration) and the entry of water through manhole covers (inflow), which can increase the quantity of wastewater.

Intergenerational Responsibility

The doctrine that every generation has a responsibility to the next to preserve the environment. Established in Oposa v Factoran.

Lender Liability

The legal principle of holding lenders liable for the acts of their borrowers. This is NOT applicable in the Philippines.

Lender Protection

Measures lenders can take to avoid liability, such as structuring lending agreements and availing of liability insurance.

LLDA

Laguna Lake Development Authority; an agency with jurisdiction over development and environment in the Laguna Lake region.

LGUs

Local Government Units (provinces, cities, municipalities, barangays); empowered to enforce certain environmental laws and regulations through local ordinances.

Meterage (Water)

The use of water meters for individual consumers, which imposes a sense of responsibility and reduces per capita water consumption.

MGB

Mines and Geosciences Bureau; a bureau of the DENR responsible for the conservation and management of mineral resources.

MMT

Multi-Partite Monitoring Team; composed of project stakeholders and the public, mandated to conduct quarterly ocular visits to validate a proponent's compliance with its ECC for ECPs.

Multimedia pollution problems

Environmental problems that cross the boundaries between air, water, and soil systems.

Nell Doctrine

The general rule that a corporation buying all assets of another is not responsible for the seller's liabilities, with exceptions for fraud, merger, continuation of business, or express assumption of liability.

Oposa v Factoran

Landmark Supreme Court case establishing the right to a healthy ecology as a directly enforceable right and recognizing the principle of intergenerational responsibility.

People's Survival Fund

A government fund in the Philippines for long-term financing of climate change mitigation projects and disaster risk reduction activities.

Personal Liability of Directors/Officers

Directors or officers who wilfully and knowingly assent to patently unlawful acts (like environmental violations) can be held personally liable under the Revised Corporation Code and specific environmental statutes.

Philippine Environmental Code

Presidential Decree 1152; stipulates management systems for air, water, land use, natural resources, and waste.

Philippine Environmental Policy

Presidential Decree 1151; lays down national environmental policies, targets, and guidelines for the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

Philippine Mining Act

A law that provides for compensation for mining pollution damages through a mandatory reserve fund from mines wastes and tailing fees.

Piercing the Corporate Veil

A legal doctrine where a court disregards the separate personality of a corporation to hold stockholders or members liable, often to prevent fraud or injustice.

Polluter Pays Principle

The principle that those who produce pollution should bear the costs of managing it to prevent damage to human health or the environment.

POTWs

Publicly Owned Treatment Works; the U.S. federal term for municipal wastewater treatment systems.

Precautionary Principle

A principle applied when there is scientific uncertainty about a potential for serious harm, allowing for protective action. The Philippine Supreme Court cautions it should be a principle of last resort, not based on mere emotion.

Presidential Decree 1151

The Philippine Environmental Policy (1977).

Presidential Decree 1152

The Philippine Environmental Code (1977).

Proof Beyond Reasonable Doubt

The highest standard of proof, required for criminal liability, defined as the degree of proof that produces "moral certainty" in an unprejudiced mind.

Public Trust Doctrine

The doctrine that vital resources like water are held in trust by the government for the public, who is the beneficial owner. Used in the Maynilad case.

Quasi-delict

An act or omission causing damage to another due to fault or negligence where no prior contract exists.

Renewable Energy Act

A law providing incentives like income tax holidays and tax exemptions for developers of renewable energy facilities.

Retention of Environmental Liability (Waste)

The principle that a waste generator remains responsible for their waste until it has been certified as properly treated or disposed of by an accredited third-party treater.

Rules of Procedure for Environmental Cases

A 2010 set of Supreme Court rules that liberalized legal standing and formalized remedies like the writ of kalikasan, writ of continuing mandamus, and SLAPP defense.

Safe Disposal of Human Waste (Criteria)

Must not: 1) contaminate drinking water, 2) be accessible to vectors, 3) be accessible to children, 4) violate laws, 5) pollute bathing/shellfish/water-supply areas, or 6) cause odor/unsightly nuisance.

Self-made environment

The environment that humans have modified, to which our modern ethic is adapted, as opposed to the natural environment.

Single-medium pollution problems

Pollution problems confined to one medium: either air, water, or soil.

SLAPP

Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation; a defense against legal actions intended to harass, vex, or stifle public participation in environmental enforcement.

Solid Waste Management System

A system for managing solid waste, which is generally seen as a problem to be solved cheaply rather than a resource to be recovered.

Steward of Nature

A concept recognized by the Supreme Court, granting legal standing to any Filipino citizen to file a suit to enforce environmental laws on behalf of nature itself.

Storage Reservoir (Water)

A facility (like a water tower) that holds excess water produced during low-demand periods to meet high demand during the day and provide emergency backup.

Substantial Evidence

The standard of proof for administrative liability; defined as evidence a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to justify a conclusion.

Surface Water

Water sources on the earth's surface, such as streams, lakes, and rivers.

Sustainability Reporting Guidelines

SEC rules requiring publicly listed companies to disclose environmental, economic, and societal impacts in their annual reports, starting in 2020.

SWMP

Solid Waste Management Plans; mandated by the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act for all local government units.

Systems Approach

An engineering approach that looks at all interrelated parts of a system and their effects on one another, often by simplifying the system to a tractable model.

Take-back, Recover, Recycle or Dispose (Requirements)

An obligation that can be imposed on responsible parties at their own expense, particularly for imported hazardous wastes under the Toxic Substances Act.

Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Wastes Control Act

A law that prohibits unauthorized use and disposal of hazardous substances and requires generators to register.

Transfer of Liability (Contractual)

Liability for breaches of law CANNOT be transferred through contractual agreements, as a contract cannot override the law.

Waste Minimization

The principle that the best solution to pollution is to not produce waste in the first place.

Water Mains

The pipes that make up a city's water distribution system.

Water Resource Management System

The environmental system encompassing the collection, purification, transmission, and distribution of water.

Writ of Continuing Mandamus

A remedy directing a government agency to perform acts to enforce an environmental law until the court's judgment is fully satisfied.

Writ of Kalikasan

A legal remedy in the Philippines against extensive environmental damage affecting inhabitants of two or more cities or provinces.

WWTP

Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Multimedia Systems (Environmental Context)

The concept that environmental problems cross the air-water-soil boundary, where controlling pollution in one medium (e.g., air) can lead to pollution in another (e.g., water or soil).

Waste Minimization

The principle that the best solution to environmental pollution is to prevent waste from being produced in the first place, thus eliminating the need for treatment or disposal.

Acid Rain

Rain resulting from the emission of sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere, which pollutes water and changes soil chemistry, ultimately harming fish and trees.

"Polluter Pays" Principle

The principle that liabilities for environmental damage or harm are imposed upon the polluters themselves.

"Precautionary Principle"

The principle applied when there is a lack of full scientific certainty about potential harm, allowing for protective measures to be taken. It requires the coincidence of uncertainty, the possibility of irreversible harm, and the possibility of serious harm.

Principle of Intergenerational Responsibility

A legal doctrine stating that the current generation has a responsibility to future generations (including those not yet conceived) to preserve the environment.

Public Trust Doctrine

A doctrine holding that vital resources like water are held in trust by the government for the public, who is the beneficial owner. Courts can enforce this trust even against the government.