DENR and Water Quality Management

Role of DENR

• The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) plays a key role in regulating water quality and pollution control.
• The DENR reviews and sets effluent standards for various industries, enforcing water quality guidelines.
• The DENR classifies and reclassifies water bodies and groundwater sources and produces a national groundwater vulnerability map.
• The DENR is responsible for establishing methods and procedures for sampling and analyzing water quality.
• The DENR develops an integrated water quality management framework and ten-year management plans for each water management area.

Wastewater Discharge Permits

• Facilities that discharge regulated effluent into Philippine waters must secure a permit to discharge.
• The DENR grants wastewater discharge permits as legal authorization to discharge wastewater.

Wastewater terminology

• Wastewater is waste in a liquid state containing pollutants.
• Effluent is a regulated discharge from a known source into a body of water or land, such as wastewater from manufacturing plants, industrial facilities, or domestic, commercial, and recreational facilities.
• Discharge is the act of releasing any material into a water body or onto land from which it might flow or drain into water, including spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, or dumping.

Wastewater Discharge Permit Application

• The application period for a wastewater discharge permit is 30 working days.

Acceptable Flow Measuring Procedures

• Regulated industries are required to install flow metering devices at the outlet to monitor the volume of discharge.
• The flow metering device must indicate a verifiable flow rate, preferably in metric units (m3/h).
• Acceptable flow metering devices include weirs or flumes for open channels, variable area type, pitot tube type, magnetic type, Doppler effect flow meter for closed pipes.

General Effluent Standard of 2016

• The Water Quality Guidelines (WQG) and General Effluent Standards (GES) of 2016 (DAO 2016-08) establish industry-specific, technology-based standards for the amount of industrial wastewater pollutants discharged into waters.
• The parameters in the standards are based on the Industry Category and the standard value is based on the classification of the receiving body of water.

Effluent Standard

• An effluent standard is a legal restriction or limitation on the quantities, rates, and concentrations of physical, chemical, or biological parameters in effluent that a point source is allowed to discharge into a body of water or land.

Scope and Coverage of DAO 2016-08

• The General Effluent Standard (GES) applies to all point sources of pollution, regardless of volume, that discharge into receiving bodies of water or land.

Classification of Water Bodies

• Water bodies are classified based on their intended uses and water quality.
• Fresh water is classified into four categories: Class AA (raw water source), Class A (drinking water source), Class B (fisheries and recreation), and Class C (agricultural use).
• Marine water is classified into three categories: Class SA (Shellfish culture), Class SB (Finfish culture and recreation), and Class SC (Industrial cooling and navigation).

Significant Effluent Quality Parameters per Sector

• Table 8 of DAO 2016-08 outlines specific effluent quality parameters for different sectors.

Effluent Standards (Table 9 of DAO 2016-08)

• Table 9 of DAO 2016-08 provides detailed effluent standards for specific parameters based on the classification of the receiving body of water.

Updated Water Quality Guidelines (WQG) and General Effluent Standards (GES) for Selected Parameters

• DAO 2021-19 updated the Water Quality Guidelines (WQG) and General Effluent Standards (GES) for specific parameters, including ammonia as NH3-N, boron, copper as dissolved copper, fecal coliform, phosphate as phosphorus (total, reactive), and sulfate.

Permit Fee

• Application Fees for a wastewater discharge permit consist of:
  • Application Fee: Php 55.00
  • Documentary Stamp Tax: PHP 30.00
  • Legal Research Fee: PD1856 – Php 10.00

Wastewater Discharge Fee (WDF)

• The wastewater discharge fee is imposed on all sources of wastewater discharge, including discharges from wastewater treatment plants (WTP) and sewage treatment plants (STP).
• The formula for calculating the WDF is:
  • WDF = L! × R
  • Where:
    • R = rate per kilogram (Php/kg) - 5.00 per kg for priority pollutant parameter (e.g., BOD & TSS)
    • L! = net waste load (kg/year)
    • L! = (C! - C*) Q! × N! × 0.001
    • C! = average daily effluent concentration limit (mg/L) for priority pollutant
    • C* = average water quality concentration limit for priority pollutant of the abstracted or intake water
    • Q! = average daily volumetric flow measurement (m3/d)
    • N! = total number of discharge days in a year

Illegal Facilities and Penalties

• The DENR imposes fines, damages, and penalties for violating the provisions of the Act and its implementing rules and regulations.
• Violations include:
  • Operating facilities that discharge or allow prohibited chemicals, substances, or pollutants.
  • Undertaking activities or development and expansion of projects in violation of environmental regulations.
  • Discharging regulated water pollutants without a valid discharge permit.
  • Non-compliance with the Water Quality Framework and Management Area Action Plan.
  • Refusal to allow entry, inspection, and monitoring.
  • Refusal to allow access to relevant reports and records.
  • Refusal or failure to submit reports when required.
  • Refusal or failure to designate Pollution Control Officers.
  • Directly using booster pumps in the distribution system or tampering with water supply.

Penalties

• Penalties for violations of the Act can include fines ranging from Php 10,000 to PhP 200,000 per day of violation.
• Failure to undertake clean-up can lead to imprisonment of up to 4 years and fines.
• Failure or refusal to clean up resulting in serious injury or loss of life or irreversible water contamination can result in imprisonment of 6 to 12 years and fines.

This quiz explores the vital role of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in regulating water quality and managing wastewater in the Philippines. Learn about effluent standards, discharge permits, and the classification of water bodies. Test your knowledge about the DENR's efforts to protect water resources and public health.