REVISED FORESTRY CODE OF THE

PHILIPPINES

SPECIAL LAWS RELATING TO SECTION 68: Cutting, gathering and/or collecting

timber or other products without license.

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW Possession of timber without legal documents

SECTION 69: Unlawful occupation or destruction of

forest lands.

Section 68. Cutting, gathering and/or

collecting timber or other products
without license.
Any person who shall cut, gather, collect,
or remove timber or other forest
products from any forest land, or timber
from alienable and disposable public lands,
or from private lands, without any authority;
or possess timber or other forest
products without the legal documents
as required under existing forest laws and
regulations, shall be guilty of QUALIFIED
THEFT as defined and punished under
Articles 309 and 310 of the Revised Penal
Code; (as amended by EO 277)
Article 309 of RPC as amended by RA 10951 ELEMENTS OF QUALIFIED THEFT OF LOGS
Penalty for theft ranging from Arresto menor in its
minimum period or a fine of not exceeding Five thousand
pesos (₱5,000), when the value of the thing stolen is not
over Five hundred pesos (₱500), and the offender shall 1) That the accused cut, gathered, collected or removed timber or
have acted under the impulse of hunger, poverty, or the other forest products;
difficulty of earning a livelihood for the support of himself
or his family.
Up to prisión mayor in its minimum and medium periods, 2) that the timber or other forest products cut, gathered, collected or
but the total of the penalty which may be imposed shall removed belongs to the government or to any private individual; and
not exceed twenty (20) years.
3) that the cutting, gathering, collecting or removing was without
Article 310 of the Revised Penal Code
authority under a license agreement, lease, license, or permit granted
The crime of QUALFIED theft shall be punished by the by the state.
penalties next higher by two degrees than those
respectively specified in the next preceding article.

Is the failure to allege in the information the In the case of Villarin vs. People
true owner of the forest products material in
the crime of Qualified theft of logs under the Mere possession of timber without the
Possession, under the law, includes not only
actual possession, but also constructive
Forestry Code of the Philippines? legal documents required under forest possession. Actual possession exists when
laws and regulations makes one the [object of the crime] is in the immediate
NO. physical control of the accused. On the other
automatically liable of violation of
hand, constructive possession exists when the
Section 68, Presidential Decree (P.D.)
“Failure of the information to allege the true owner of the forest [object of the crime] is under the dominion and
products is not material; it was sufficient that it alleged that the No. 705, as amended. Lack of control of the accused or when he has the
criminal intent is not a valid defense. right to exercise dominion and control over the
taking was without any authority or license from the
place where it is found."
government.”

[People vs CFI G.R. No. L-46772 February 13, 1992] G.R. No. 175289. August 31, 2011
 The word lumber does not appear in
Section 68. Does the omission amount to an
exclusion of possession of lumber from its
coverage?
NO.
Illegal possession of lumber would still be covered by the same
provision in accordance with Mustang vs CA, G.R. No. 104988 June
18, 1996.
Accessory penalties
Provided, That in the case of partnership, association or corporation, the
officers who ordered the cutting, gathering or collecting shall be liable, and if such
officers are aliens, they shall, in addition to the penalty, be deported without
further proceedings on the part of the Commission on Immigration and
Deportation.
The Court shall further order the confiscation in favor of the government of the
timber or forest products to cut, gathered, collected or removed, and the
machinery, equipment, implements and tools used therein, and the forfeiture of
his improvements in the area.
The same penalty plus cancellation of his license agreement, lease, license or
permit and perpetual disqualification from acquiring any such privilege shall
be imposed upon any licensee, lessee, or permittee who cuts timber from the
licensed or leased area of another, without prejudice to whatever civil action the
latter may bring against the offender.
Administrative Authority of the Department or His Duly
Authorized Representative To Order Confiscation.
Sec. 68-A. In all cases of violation of this Code or other forest
laws, rules and regulations, the Department Head or his duly
authorized representative, may order the confiscation of any
forest products illegally cut, gathered, removed, or possessed or
abandoned, and all conveyances used either by land, water or
air in the commission of the offense and to dispose of the same
in accordance with pertinent laws, regulations and policies on
the matter. [as provided under EO 277]
The Revised Forestry Code contains no definition of either timber
or lumber. While the former is included in forest products as
defined in paragraph (q) of Section 3, the latter is found in
paragraph (aa) of the same section in the definition of "Processing
plant," which simply means that lumber is a processed log or
processed forest raw material.
And insofar as possession of timber without the required legal
documents is concerned, Section 68 of P.D. No. 705, as
amended, makes no distinction between raw or processed
timber. Neither should we make such distinction.
May an action for REPLEVIN prosper to recover a movable
property which is the subject matter of an administrative
forfeiture proceeding in the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources?
NO
“It should be noted that the truck was seized by the petitioners because it was
transporting forest products without the required permit of the DENR in
manifest contravention of Section 68 of P.D. 705 as amended by E.O 277.
Section 68-A of P.D. 705, as amended, unquestionably warrants the
confiscation as well as the disposition by the Secretary of DENR or his duly
authorized representatives of the conveyances used in violating the provision
of forestry laws. Evidently, the continued possession or detention of the
truck by the petitioners for administrative forfeiture proceeding is legally
permissible, hence, no wrongful detention exists in the case at bar."
PAAT vs PEOPLE [ G.R. No. 111107 January 10, 1997 ]
Section 69. Unlawful occupation or destruction of PENALTIES
forest lands.
Offender shall, upon conviction, be fined in an amount of
Any person who enters and occupies or possesses,
not less than five hundred pesos (P500.00) nor more than
or makes kaingin for his own private use or for others
twenty thousand pesos (P20,000.00) and imprisoned for
any forest land without authority under a license not less than six (6) months nor more than two (2) years for
agreement, lease, license or permit, or in any manner each such offense, and be liable to the payment of ten (10)
destroys such forest land or part thereof, or causes times the rental fees and other charges which would have
any damage to the timber stand and other products been accrued had the occupation and use of the land been
and forest growths found therein, or who assists, aids authorized under a license agreement, lease, license or
or abets any other person to do so, or sets a fire, or permit:
negligently permits a fire to be set in any forest land. Provided, That in the case of an offender found guilty of
making kaingin, the penalty shall be imprisoned for not less
than two (2) nor more than (4) years and a fine equal to
eight (8) times the regular forest charges due on the forest
KAINGIN - portion of the forest land, whether occupied
products destroyed, without prejudice to the payment of
or not, which is subjected to shifting and/or permanent the full cost of restoration of the occupied area as
slash-and-burn cultivation having little or no provision to determined by the Bureau.
prevent soil erosion.
Accessory penalties
The Court shall further order the eviction of the offender from the land and the
forfeiture to the Government of all improvements made and all vehicles,
domestic animals and equipment of any kind used in the commission of the
offense. If not suitable for use by the Bureau, said vehicles shall be sold at public
auction, the proceeds of which shall accrue to the Development Fund of the
Bureau.
In case the offender is a government official or employee, he shall, in addition
to the above penalties, be deemed automatically dismissed from office and
permanently disqualified from holding any elective or appointive position.
If the offense was committed in a private land and the complaint was
brought by a private offended party to the fiscal.
Prosecution in Courts of First Instance(now RTC) may be commenced by
an information signed by a fiscal after conducting a preliminary
investigation. Said section should not be interpreted to vest exclusive
authority upon forest officers to conduct investigations regarding offenses
described in the decree rather, it should be construed as granting forest
officers and employees special authority to arrest and investigate offenses
described in P.D. 705, to reinforce the exercise of such authority by those
upon whom it is vested by general law.
[People vs CFI G.R. No. L-46772 February 13, 1992]
Section 5. Persons Authorized to Possess and Use a
Chain Saw.
(a) any applicant who has a subsisting timber license agreement, production
sharing agreement, or similar agreements, or a private land timber permit;
(b) to those who is an orchard and fruit tree farmer;
(c) to those who is an industrial tree farmer;
(d) to those who is a licensed wood processor and the chain saw shall be
used for the cutting of timber that has been legally sold to said applicant; or
(e) to those who shall use the chain saw for a legal purpose.
Agencies of the government that use chain saws in some aspects of their
functions must likewise secure the necessary permit from the Department
before operating the same.
Arrest; Institution of Criminal Actions.
SECTION 80 of PD705, covers two (2) specific instances when a forest
officer may commence a prosecution for the violation of the Revised
Forestry Code of the Philippines.
The first authorizes a forest officer or employee of the Bureau of Forestry
to arrest without a warrant, any person who has committed or is
committing, in his presence, any of the offenses described in the decree.
The second covers a situation when an offense described in the decree
is not committed in the presence of the forest officer or employee and the
commission is brought to his attention by a report or a complaint. In both
cases, however, the forest officer or employee shall investigate the
offender and file a complaint with the appropriate official authorized by
law to conduct a preliminary investigation and file the necessary
informations in court.
Republic Act No. 9175 Chainsaw Act
Section 7 provides for the penal provisions for:
(a) Selling, Purchasing, Re-selling, Transferring, Distributing or
Possessing a Chain Saw Without a Proper Permit.
(b) Unlawful Importation or Manufacturing of Chain Saw.
(c) Tampering of Engine Serial Number.
(d) Actual Unlawful Use of Chain Saw.
"CHAIN SAW" shall refer to any portable power saw or similar cutting
implement, rendered operative by an electric or internal combustion
engine or similar means, that may be used for, but is not limited to, the
felling of trees or the cutting of timber(Section 3)
Section 7. Penal Provisions. –
(a) Selling, Purchasing, Re-selling, Transferring, Distributing or Possessing a
Chain Saw Without a Proper Permit. - Any person who sells, purchases, transfer
the ownership, distributes or otherwise disposes or possesses a chain saw without
first securing the necessary permit from the Department shall be punished with
imprisonment of four (4) years, two (2) months and one (1) day to six (6) years or a
fine of not less than Fifteen thousand pesos (P15,000.00) but not more Thirty
thousand pesos (30,000.00) or both at the discretion of the court.
(2) Unlawful Importation or Manufacturing of Chain Saw. - Any person who
imports or manufactures a chain saw without obtaining prior authorization from the
Department shall be punished by imprisonment of not less than one (1) month nor
more than six (6) months and a fine of not less than One thousand pesos
(P1,000.00) for more than Four thousand pesos (P4,000.00).
(3) Tampering of Engine Serial Number. - Any person who is found to have
defaced or tampered with the original registered engine serial number of any
chain saw unit shall be punished by imprisonment of not less than one (1)
month nor more than six (6) months and a fine of not less than One thousand
pesos (P1,000.00) nor more than Four thousand pesos (P4,000.00).
(4) Actual Unlawful Use of Chain Saw. - Any person who is found to be in
possession of a chain saw and uses the same to cut trees and timber in forest
land or elsewhere except as authorized by the Department shall be penalized
with imprisonment of six (6) years and one (1) day to eight (8) years or a fine of
not less that Thirty thousand pesos (P30,000.00) but not more than Fifty
thousand pesos (P50,000.00) or both at the discretion of the court without
prejudice to being prosecuted for a separate offense that may have been
simultaneously committed.
Accessory penalties
If the violation under this Section is committed by or through the command or
order of another person, partnership or corporation, the penalties herein
provided shall likewise be imposed on such other person, or the responsible
officer(s) in such partnership or corporation.
If the offender is a public official or employee, in addition to the above penalties,
he shall be removed from office and perpetually disqualified from holding any
public office.
The chain saw unlawfully used shall be likewise confiscated in favor of the
government. The chain saws confiscated under this Section shall be sold at
public auction to qualified buyers and the proceeds thereof shall go to the
Department. (Section 7)

Presidential Decree No. 979

Validity of Registration MARINE POLLUTION DECREE OF 1976

“DUMPING” means the

Section 6 - Every permit to possess and/or use a chain saw for legitimate routine discharge of
SECTION 4 : It shall be unlawful for any person to —
purpose shall be valid for two (2) years upon issuance:
effluent or other matter

Provided, That permits to possess and use chainsaw issued to non- a. discharge, dump or suffer, permit the discharge of oil, incidental to the propulsion

commercial orchard and fruit tree farmers shall be valid for a period of five noxious gaseous and liquid substances and other of, or derived from the
(5) years upon issuance. harmful substances from or out of any ship, vessel, normal operations of
vessels, aircraft, platforms
For this purpose, the Department shall be allowed to collect reasonable barge, or any other floating craft, or other man-made
or other man-made
registration fees for the effective implementation of this Act. structures at sea, by any method, means or manner, into or
structures at sea and their
upon the territorial and inland navigable waters of the equipment.
Philippines;

b. throw, discharge or deposit, dump, or cause suffer or "REFUSE" means c. deposit or cause, suffer or procure to be deposited
"Navigable Waters"
procure to be thrown, discharged, or deposited either from or garbage, waste, wood material of any kind in any place on the bank of any navigable means the waters
residues, sand, lime of the Philippines,
out of any ship, barge, or other floating craft of vessel of any water or on the bank of any tributary of any navigable water,
cinders ashes, offal, including the
kind, or from the shore, wharf, manufacturing establishment, or where the same shall be liable to be washed into such territorial sea and
nightsoil, tar, dye
inland waters
mill of any kind, any refuse matter of any kind or description staffs, acids, chemicals navigable water, either by ordinary or high tides, or by which are
whatever other than that flowing from streets and sewers and substances other presently, or be in
storms or floods, or otherwise, whereby navigation shall or
than sewage and
the future
and passing therefrom in a liquid state into tributary of any may be impeded or obstructed or increased the level of susceptible for use
industrial wastes that by watercraft
navigable water from which the same shall float or be washed may cause pollution. pollution of such water.
into such navigable water; and

Exception:
Such acts shall NOT be prohibited in cases of emergency imperilling
life or property, or unavoidable accident, collision, or stranding or
in any cases which constitute danger to human life or property or a
real threat to vessels, aircraft, platforms, or other man-made
structure, or if dumping appears to be the only way of averting the
threat and if there is probability that the damage consequent upon
such dumping will be less than would otherwise occur, and except
as otherwise permitted by regulations prescribed by the National
Pollution Control Commission or the Philippine Coast Guard (SECTION
4)
Republic Act No. 6969
Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear
Wastes Control Act
Nuclear wastes are hazardous wastes made radioactive by
exposure to the radiation incidental to the production or
utilization of nuclear fuels but does not include nuclear fuel,
or radioisotopes which have reached the final stage of
fabrication so as to be usable for any scientific, medical,
agricultural, commercial, or industrial purpose.
[Section 5 (i)]
Hazardous Waste
● Substances that are without any safe commercial,
industrial, agricultural or economic usage and are
shipped, transported or brought from the country of
origin for dumping or disposal into or in transit through
any part of the territory of the Philippines.
● It shall also refer to by-products, side-products,
process residues, spent reaction media, contaminated
plant or equipment or other substances from
manufacturing operations, and as consumer discards
of manufactured products [Section 5 (h)]
PENALTIES:
Any person who violates Section 4 of this Decree or any regulations prescribed in
pursuance thereof, shall be liable for a fine of not less than Two Hundred
Pesos nor more than Ten Thousand Pesos or by imprisonment of not less
than thirty days nor more than one year or both such fine and
imprisonment, for each offense, without prejudice to the civil liability of the
offender in accordance with existing laws.
Any vessel from which oil or other harmful substances are discharged in violation
of Section 4 or any regulation prescribed in pursuance thereof, shall be liable for
the penalty of fine specified in this section, and clearance of such vessel from
the port of the Philippines may be withheld until the fine is paid.
In addition to the penalties above-prescribed, the Philippine Coast Guard shall
provide in its rules and regulations such reasonable administrative penalties as
may be necessary for the effective implementation of this decree. -(SECTION 7)
Hazardous Substances
Substances which present either:
i) Short-term acute hazards, such as acute toxicity by ingestion, inhalation or
skin absorption, corrosivity or other skin or eye contact hazards or the risk of
fire or explosion; or
ii) Long-term environmental hazards, including chronic toxicity upon
repeated exposure, carcinogenicity (which may in some cases result from
acute exposure but with a long latent period), resistance to detoxification
process such as biodegradation, the potential to pollute underground or
surface waters, or aesthetically objectionable properties such as offensive
odors. [Section 5 (g)]
Prohibited Acts
a) Knowingly use a chemical substance or mixture which is
imported, manufactured, processed or distributed in violation
of this Act or implementing rules and regulations or orders;
b) Failure or refusal to submit reports, notices or other
information, access to records as required by this Act, or
permit inspection of establishment where chemicals are
manufactured, processed, stored or otherwise held;
 Prohibited Acts
c) Failure or refusal to comply with the pre-manufacture and
pre-importation requirements; and
d) Cause, aid or facilitate, directly or indirectly, in the storage,
importation, or bringing into Philippine territory, including its
maritime economic zones, even in transit, either by means of
land, air or sea transportation or otherwise keeping in storage
any amount of hazardous and nuclear wastes in any part of
the Philippines. [Section 13]
CRIMINAL PENALTIES
The penalty of imprisonment of twelve (12) years and one (1) day to twenty
(20) years, shall be imposed upon any person who shall violate Section 13(d)
of this Act.
In the case of corporations or other associations, the above penalty shall be
imposed upon the managing partner, president or chief executive in addition to
an exemplary damage of at least Five hundred thousand pesos
(P500,000.00). If it is a foreign firm, the director and all the officers of such
foreign firm shall be barred from entry into the Philippines, in addition to the
cancellation of its license to do business in the Philippines; [Section 14(b)]
CRIMINAL PENALTIES
Every penalty imposed for the unlawful importation, entry,
transport, manufacture, processing, sale or distribution of
chemical substances or mixtures into or within the Philippines
shall carry with it the confiscation and forfeiture in favor of the
Government of the proceeds of the unlawful act and
instruments, tools or other improvements including vehicles,
sea vessels, and aircrafts used in or with which the offense was
committed. Chemical substances so confiscated and forfeited
by the Government at its option shall be turned over to the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources for
safekeeping and proper disposal. [Section 14 (c)]
CRIMINAL PENALTIES
The penalty of imprisonment of six (6) months and one (1) day to six (6) years
and one (1) day and a fine ranging from Six hundred pesos (P600.00) to Four
thousand pesos (P4,000.00) shall be imposed upon any person who shall violate
Section 13(a) to (c) of this Act and shall not be covered by the Probation Law.
In case any violation of this Act is committed by a partnership, corporation,
association or any juridical person, the partner, president, director or manager
who shall consent to or shall knowingly tolerate such violation shall be directly
liable and responsible for the act of the employees and shall be criminally liable
as a co-principal; [Section 14(a)]
CRIMINAL PENALTIES
In both cases, If the offender is a foreigner, he or she shall be deported
and barred from any subsequent entry into the Philippines after serving
his or her sentence.
Similarly, if the offender is a government official or employee, he or she
shall, in addition to the above penalties, be deemed automatically
dismissed from office and permanently disqualified from holding any
elective or appointive position.
CRIMINAL PENALTIES
Chemical substances so confiscated and forfeited by the
Government at its option shall be turned over to the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources for
safekeeping and proper disposal.
The person or firm responsible or connected with the
bringing or importation into the country of hazardous or
nuclear wastes shall be under obligation to transport or
send back said prohibited wastes [Section 14 (d)]
ADMINISTRATIVE FINES
Ex-Parte Order of Confiscation or
Impoundment.
In all cases of violations of this Act, including violations of
implementing rules and regulations which have been duly
promulgated and published in accordance with Section 16 of Whenever the Secretary or his duly authorized
this Act, the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources representative finds a prima facie evidence that
is hereby authorized to impose a fine of not less than Ten
thousand pesos (P10,000.00), but not more than Fifty
the violation presents unreasonable risk and/or
thousand pesos (P50,000.00) upon any person or entity found injury to health or the environment, the Secretary
guilty thereof. or his duly authorized representative may issue an
The administrative fines imposed and collected by the Ex-Parte Order of confiscation or impoundment.
Department of Environment and Natural Resources shall
accrue to a special fund to be administered by the Department
exclusively for projects and research activities relative to toxic [Section 11, DENR AO 29 of 1992 known Implementing Rules and
Regulations of RA 6969]
substances and mixtures [Section 15]

Exemptions from the requirements of notificatication,

assessment and testing of chemical substances.
1. Those chemicals already included in the Philippine
Inventory of Chemicals and Chemical Substances;
2. Those to be produced or used in small quantities
solely for experimental or research and development
purposes;
3. Those that are reaction intermediates which do not
leave the closed production system or undergo
intermediate storage during the reaction process;
4. Those chemical substances that are regulated by
laws other than RA 6969.
[Section 22, DENR AO 29 of 1992 known Implementing Rules and
Regulations of RA 6969]
Can chemical components allegedly part of trade
secrets be divulged to the public?
NO, the same is not subject to disclosure.
In the case of Air Philippines vs Pennswell, the Court found no
reason to except trade secrets from the application of the rule
on privilege on confidential information. If we were to weigh
the conflicting interests between the parties, we rule in favor of
the greater interest of holder of trade secrets Trade secrets
should receive greater protection from discovery, because they
derive economic value from being generally unknown and not
readily ascertainable by the public. To the mind of this Court,
petitioner was not able to show a compelling reason for us to
lift the veil of confidentiality which shields respondent’s trade
secrets. [G.R. No. 172835; December 13, 2007 ]

Public Access to Records, Reports or

Notification

Department of Environment and Natural Resources may consider

a record, report or information or particular portions thereof
confidential and may not be made public when such would
divulge trade secrets, production or sales figures or methods,
production or processes unique to such manufacturer,
processor or distributor, or would otherwise tend to affect
THAT’S ALL FOR TONIGHT !
adversely the competitive position of such manufacturer,
processor or distributor.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources,
THANK YOU !!!
however, may release information subject to claim of
confidentiality to a medical research or scientific institution
where the information is needed for the purpose of medical
diagnosis or treatment of a person exposed to the chemical
substance or mixture. [Section 12 ]