Authority, Effectivity, and Publication
- Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, President of the Republic of the Philippines, issues Proclamation No. 1607 pursuant to powers vested in the President by law.
- Proclamation No. 1607 becomes effective for purposes of establishing the reserve and directing the withdrawal from entry, sale, disposition, or settlement consistent with its terms upon publication, including its effect through the described withdrawal.
- Proclamation No. 1607 is issued after recommendation by the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources.
Legal Basis and Prior Reserve Modification
- Proclamation No. 1607 is issued upon recommendation of the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources.
- Proclamation No. 1607 modifies the prior legal basis for the area’s reserve boundaries by expressly stating that the technical description corresponds with an alteration to Proclamation No. 245, dated January 18, 1956, which established the Southern Zambales Forest Reserve.
- Proclamation No. 1607 provides that the technical description “correspondingly modifies” the earlier proclamation’s established reserve description.
Reserve Declaration and Land Description
- Proclamation No. 1607 establishes Mangan Vaca Watershed Forest Reserve over specified portions of land in Barangays Mangan Vaca, Aningway-Sacatihan, Municipality of Subic, Province of Zambales.
- Proclamation No. 1607 withdraws the identified land from entry, sale, disposition or settlement, subject to prior private rights, if any there be.
- Proclamation No. 1607 identifies the reserve’s metes and bounds by a detailed boundary course starting at a point marked “1” tied to “BLLM No. 1, Subic Cadastre 547-D” and ending at the corner of beginning.
- Proclamation No. 1607 states the area contains three hundred hectares (300.0 has) more or less.
Primary Purpose: Water Yield Priority
- Proclamation No. 1607 establishes the reserve for purposes of protecting, maintaining or improving its water yield.
- Proclamation No. 1607 declares that the reserve also functions as a restraining mechanism against inappropriate forest exploitation and disruptive land use practices.
- Proclamation No. 1607 mandates that the production and conservation of water is of primary importance.
- Proclamation No. 1607 subordinates all other uses of the forest to the water-yield purpose.
Administration, Management, and Coordination
- Proclamation No. 1607 provides that the Watershed Reservation is under the administration and management of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
- Proclamation No. 1607 requires that DENR manages the reserve in coordination with the Local Government of Subic, the Subic Water District, and other stakeholders.
- Proclamation No. 1607 directs management toward the objective of maintaining the area as a source of water for domestic and other uses.
Watershed Management Council: Policy Body
- Proclamation No. 1607 establishes the Organized Watershed Management Council as the policy making body for the management of the Mangan Vaca Watershed Forest Reserve.
- Proclamation No. 1607 provides that the Council’s membership may be expanded to include representatives of major stakeholders.
Transitory/Conforming Effect on Boundaries
- Proclamation No. 1607 expressly provides that its technical description correspondingly modifies Proclamation No. 245 dated January 18, 1956, which established the Southern Zambales Forest Reserve.
- Proclamation No. 1607 anchors its boundary description to mapped and cadastral reference points and uses the stated boundary course to define the reserve’s extent.
- Proclamation No. 1607 maintains that the land declaration is effective as a watershed reserve with prescribed administrative management and priority use for water yield.