Philippine Energy Policy Wiki

EO 206 (s. 2016) — Sustainable RE Resource Management; Repeal of EO 186 (Geothermal Watershed)

Status
operative
Confidence
high
Effective date
2016-05-20

Full title: Adopting the Policy on Ensuring Sustainable Renewable Energy Resource Management and Mandating the Department of Energy (DOE) to Lead in Its Implementation

Signed: May 20, 2016 | President: Benigno S. Aquino III

Context

Signed in the final months of the Aquino III administration. EO 206 reverses EO 186 (2015) — which had transferred geothermal watershed jurisdiction to DENR — and instead reinstates the pre-2015 arrangement (PNOC-controlled under EO 223/1987 and Proclamation 853/1992).

The trigger for reversal is twofold: (1) the Paris Agreement (2015) emphasized geothermal and hydropower as key RE resources whose watershed protection is critical for GHG mitigation; and (2) RA 9513 (RE Act of 2008) designated DOE as lead agency for RE development, creating an argument that RE watershed management belongs under DOE’s mandate rather than DENR’s conservation mandate [EO 206, s. 2016, WHEREAS ¶7–9, 2016-05-20].

Key Provisions

§1 — Policy: The government adopts the policy of ensuring sustainable renewable energy resource management, linked to Paris Agreement commitments [EO 206, s. 2016, §1, 2016-05-20].

§2 — DOE coordination: DOE and other agencies may enter agreements necessary to implement the Order, consistent with Paris Agreement commitments [EO 206, s. 2016, §2, 2016-05-20].

§3 — Repeal and reinstatement: EO 186 (s. 2015) is expressly repealed. EO 223 (s. 1987) and Proclamation 853 (s. 1992) — which vested PNOC with geothermal watershed jurisdiction — are reinstated [EO 206, s. 2016, §3, 2016-05-20].

Policy Notes

  • The net effect: PNOC (or its successors/designees) retakes jurisdiction over the four geothermal watershed areas (Tongonan, Palinpinon, Bacon-Manito, Mt. Apo) that EO 186 had transferred to DENR
  • This policy ping-pong within a single presidential term (EO 186 Jul 2015 → EO 206 May 2016) illustrates the unresolved institutional tension over who should manage geothermal resources — the RE lead agency (DOE/PNOC) or the environmental custodian (DENR)
  • NPC’s role over watershed areas of its power plants (under EO 224/1987) is noted but not changed by this EO
  • See Geothermal Watershed Policy — Jurisdictional History for the full institutional history

Full text: Cleaned copy