Question & AnswerQ&A (PROCLAMATION NO. 1607)
The main purpose of Proclamation No. 1607 is to declare certain portions of land in Barangays Mangan Vaca and Aningway-Sacatihan, Municipality of Subic, Province of Zambales, as the Mangan Vaca Watershed Forest Reserve to protect, maintain, or improve its water yield and to restrain inappropriate forest exploitation and disruptive land use practices.
The President of the Republic of the Philippines has the authority to establish the Mangan Vaca Watershed Forest Reserve, upon the recommendation of the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources and pursuant to powers vested by law.
The Mangan Vaca Watershed Forest Reserve covers an area of approximately three hundred hectares (300.0 hectares), more or less.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is primarily responsible for the administration and management of the Mangan Vaca Watershed Forest Reserve, in coordination with the Local Government of Subic, the Subic Water District, and other stakeholders.
The proclamation withdraws the declared land from entry, sale, disposition or settlement, subject to prior private rights, if any.
The priority use of the Mangan Vaca Watershed Forest Reserve is for the production and conservation of water, to be maintained as a source of water for domestic and other uses. All other forest uses shall be subordinated to this primary purpose.
The Organized Watershed Management Council serves as the policy-making body in the management of the Mangan Vaca Watershed Forest Reserve and may include representatives of major stakeholders.
Yes, Proclamation No. 1607 correspondingly modifies Proclamation No. 245 dated January 18, 1956, which established the Southern Zambales Forest Reserve.
No, the withdrawal from entry, sale, disposition, or settlement is subject to prior private rights, if any, meaning existing private rights are respected.
The proclamation relies on a technical description accompanied by a map, referencing coordinates and distances from known survey points (BLLM No. 1, Subic Cadastre 547-D) to describe the boundaries of the forest reserve.