Cease and Desist Order Issued vs. Negros Palm Oil Firm

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD CITY – The Environmental Management Bureau Region 6 has ordered the operator of a palm oil plantation in southern Negros to stop its operations.

The EMB issued a cease and desist order against Hacienda Asia Plantations Inc. (HAPI), halting its quarry operations, road construction, and related activities at its plantation in Candoni, Negros Occidental.

Vicente Losbañes, EMB-6 enforcement division head, said the order was served on June 13, 2025.

With the CDO issued, HAPI has temporarily ceased all affected operations pending resolution of issues related to its Environmental Compliance Certificate, Losbañes said.

He added that the EMB is also awaiting guidance from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources on the classification of the more than 6,000 hectares covered by the plantation, including forested areas.

Earlier, Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson requested the EMB to issue the CDO against HAPI’s earthmoving activities.

He also sought the intervention of Environment Secretary Raphael Lotilla, citing HAPI’s lack of an ECC.

Lacson said the EMB’s action was in response to his letter requesting enforcement.

He acknowledged the bureau’s prompt response and its exercise of regulatory authority.

“We expect that HAPI will fully cooperate and immediately address the concerns raised by stakeholders,” the governor said.

Candoni Mayor Ray Ruiz had earlier issued a final notice to suspend operations of the plantation unless it obtains an ECC.

In a letter dated June 12, 2025, addressed to Alfred Joseph Araneta, CEO of HAPI, Ruiz issued a “final notice to comply with the Multi-Partite Monitoring Team (MMT) recommendations and cease earthmoving operations within Candoni.”

“This communication serves as a final and formal demand for your company’s immediate compliance with the environmental recommendations and cease-and-desist instructions issued by the MMT and the Office of the Provincial Governor of Negros Occidental, relating to your operations within the territorial jurisdiction of the Municipality of Candoni,” the letter stated.

Ruiz added that HAPI, which operates 6,652.32 hectares of land in Barangays Gatuslao and Agboy under Integrated Forest Management Agreement No. 04-2009, with a CDMP approved on April 28, 2021, has repeatedly violated environmental laws, government regulations, and good faith agreements with the local government and residents.