The Department of the Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) reiterated that Chocolate Hills is a protected area and issued a cease and desist order against Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort in Sagbayan town.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the DENR said the Chocolate Hills were declared a protected area in 1997 under Proclamation No. 1087 and designated a National Geological Monument and Protected Landscape.

The department also made it clear that the rights and interests of the lot owner will be recognized and respected if the land was titled prior to the said proclamation. They may, however, impose certain restrictions or regulations on land use and development within the protected area, including privately owned lands.

Republic Act 7586 prohibits the “mutilating, defacing or destroying objects of natural beauty; squatting, mineral locating, or occupying any land; constructing or maintaining any kind of structure, fence, or enclosures” of protected areas.

The DENR also announced that it had already issued a temporary closure order and a notice of violation to Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort on September 6, 2023.

It also said it issued a notice of violation to the establishment last January 22, 2024, for operating without an environmental compliance certificate or an ECC.

Viral video

On March 6, travel vlogger “Ren The Adventurer” posted a video of The Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort in the Chocolate Hills in Sagbayan, Bohol, on his Facebook page.

The video went viral and drew criticisms from netizens who considered the facility to be an eyesore. People also question how an establishment was allowed to be built in a protected area.

Structures, including a swimming pool, slides, and cottages situated too close to the mounds, faced strong disapproval from netizens.

So far, his post has received 30,000 comments, 195,000 reactions, 74,000 shares, and 6.9 million views.

“Already a titled lot” – Sablas

According to a Philippine Star report, the Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort was purchased in 2005.

“The administrator and sister of the owner, Julieta Sablas, during the interview, said the property was already a titled lot when they acquired it in 2005,” the report read.

“At first, the family tried to go farming, but their efforts were just wasted as the soil around the area is reportedly ‘acidic’ and could not grow crops, plants, and the likes. So, her brother decided to convert the area into a tourist spot, which is now known as the Captain’s Peak resort, with the owner, a seaman, Edgar Buton,” it added.

The Protected Areas Management Board (PAMB) gave its approval for the development surrounding the protected area, according to Municipal Planning and Development Coordinator Maximo Lomosbog.

Even though the Chocolate Hills are a protected area, the majority of them are privately owned, Lomosbog continued.

Alan Dinoy, the municipal engineer, stated that he was surprised to learn that the excavation for the access road between two hills occurred without his office’s clearance.

The Bohol Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office announced on March 13 that it would check the resort to make sure it complies with the temporary closure order.

Bohol Governor Erico Aumentado added that DENR Region 7 “will issue [a] cease and desist order of the resort” on the same day.

📷: Screengrab from Ren the Adventurer