Case Summary (G.R. No. 110120)
Key Dates
• March 8, 1991 – Letter-complaint filed with LLDA by Task Force Camarin Dumpsite
• December 5, 1991 – LLDA issues initial cease-and-desist order
• August 14, 1992 – LLDA issues alias cease-and-desist order after resumption of dumping
• September 25, 1992 – City Government files Civil Case No. C-15598 in RTC; temporary restraining order issued
• November 10, 1992 – Supreme Court refers LLDA’s petition (G.R. No. 107542) to the Court of Appeals
• April 30, 1993 – Court of Appeals decision: LLDA lacks authority to issue cease-and-desist orders
• July 19, 1993 – Supreme Court issues temporary restraining order in G.R. No. 110120
• March 16, 1994 – Final Supreme Court decision
Applicable Law
• 1987 Constitution, Article II, Section 16 (right to a balanced and healthful ecology)
• Republic Act No. 4850, as amended by PD No. 813 and EO No. 927 (LLDA charter)
• Presidential Decree No. 1586 (Environmental Impact Statement System)
• Presidential Decree No. 1152 (Philippine Environment Code)
• Republic Act No. 3931, as amended by PD No. 984 (Pollution Control Law)
• Executive Order No. 192 (DECS reorganization, creation of Pollution Adjudication Board)
• Republic Act No. 7160 (Local Government Code of 1991)
Procedural History
LLDA first sought Court of Appeals review of an RTC order granting a preliminary injunction against its cease-and-desist order (G.R. No. 107542). The Court of Appeals dismissed LLDA’s petition, holding LLDA had no authority to issue such orders and that the RTC had jurisdiction. LLDA then filed a petition for review on certiorari in the Supreme Court (G.R. No. 110120), challenging both the jurisdictional ruling and the holding on its powers.
Facts
• Caloocan City operates an 8.6-hectare open dumpsite in Barangay Camarin without an Environmental Compliance Certificate or LLDA clearance.
• LLDA investigation (November 1991) confirmed leachate contamination risk to Marilao River tributaries.
• LLDA’s December 1991 and August 1992 orders compelled cessation of dumping; the city initially complied but later resumed operations.
• RTC Branch 127 enjoined LLDA from enforcing its orders; LLDA appealed to the Court of Appeals.
Jurisdictional Issues
The Court of Appeals held:
- RTC lacked jurisdiction to hear Civil Case No. C-15598 since review of LLDA’s administrative orders lies exclusively with the Court of Appeals under Section 9(3) of Batas Pambansa Blg. 129.
- LLDA’s charter (RA 4850, as amended) did not authorize issuance of cease-and-desist orders.
Authority of LLDA to Issue Cease-and-Desist Orders
The Supreme Court found that:
• Executive Order No. 927, Section 4(d), expressly empowers LLDA to “make, alter or modify orders requiring the discontinuance of pollution.”
• Sections 4(c), (e), (f), and (g) further grant LLDA quasi-judicial and enforcement powers, including compelling compliance, revoking permits, and deputizing other agencies.
• Even absent an express ex-parte grant, the power to issue such orders is necessarily implied in LLDA’s regulatory mandate.
Constitutional and Policy Foundations
• Article II,
Case Syllabus (G.R. No. 110120)
Facts
- Task Force Camarin Dumpsite of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish filed on March 8, 1991 a complaint with LLDA to stop the 8.6-hectare open dumpsite in Barangay Camarin, Tala Estate, Caloocan City, citing health hazards and possible water pollution.
- On November 15, 1991, LLDA conducted an on-site investigation, monitored leachate seeping into a tributary of the Marilao River, and found the City Government of Caloocan operating the dumpsite without an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) from DENR-EMB or clearance from LLDA under PD 1586, RA 4850 as amended by PD 813 and EO 927.
- Following a public hearing on December 4, 1991, LLDA confirmed that leachate and receiving-stream samples contained harmful bacteria and issued a Cease and Desist Order on December 5, 1991, halting all dumping operations.
- Caloocan City complied initially but resumed dumping in August 1992 after settlement efforts at DENR-EMB failed. LLDA then issued an Alias Cease and Desist Order on August 14, 1992 and enforced it with police assistance on September 25, 1992.
Procedural History
- Caloocan City filed Civil Case No. C-15598 in RTC Caloocan seeking nullification of LLDA’s cease and desist order and injunctive relief, claiming exclusive local-government authority under the Local Government Code.
- RTC Branch 127 (Judge Manuel Jn. Serapio) consolidated this with another case, denied LLDA’s motion to dismiss, and granted a writ of preliminary injunction on October 16, 1992 enjoining LLDA from enforcing its order.
- LLDA petitioned the Supreme Court for certiorari, prohibition, and injunction (G.R. No. 107542). On November 10, 1992, the Court referred the case to the Court of Appeals, issued a TRO against both the RTC judge’s exercise of jurisdiction and Caloocan’s dumping.
- The Court of Appeals, after hearings and settlement conferences, rendered on April 30, 1993 a decision holding (1) RTC had no jurisdiction over an appeal under BP 129 §9(3), and (2) LLDA lacked authority to issue a cease and desist order under its enabling law. It set as