ANGELES CITY, Philippines - The mayor of Porac town in Pampanga province had urged piggery owners in his municipality to start phasing out their farms or face revocation of their business licenses.
During a consultative meeting at the De Paulos restaurant here, Porac Mayor Roger Santos said piggeries in his town will be phased out by 2011 based on a municipal zoning ordinance passed in 2006.
Santos said he has ordered the strict implementation of Ordinance No. 10-2006 which enjoins owners and operators of piggeries in areas considered as commercial and residential to relocate their hog and poultry farms.
He said the relocation, which should be done within a five-year period, should be in sites identified for agro-industrial establishments.
Santos said the gradual phase-out is a win-win solution to the problem since owners of piggeries will have time to acquire their future sites, construct their physical structures, and transfer their farm inhabitants and other vital farm facilities.
The consultative meeting was attended by piggery owners and residents in Porac town as well as non-government organizations such as Krusada Kontra Amoy (KKA), Advocacy for the Development of Central Luzon (ADCL), and the Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement (PGKM). - Ashley Jay Manabat, GMANews.TV