Jacob Carbonell 10/17/23

12 - Titanium Intro to Philosophy

Position Paper - Defend the Environment

New Hope Dam: Do You Know What You’re Hoping For?

A Php 18.7-billion dam project by the government that intends to solve the city’s occasional
water interruption raises an ecological crisis. The dam, called “New Hope Dam,” will be located in
the ancestral domain of the Dumagats, and will potentially cover a large area of rich biodiversity.
Assuming that the project remains a planned concept awaiting approval, do we sacrifice our respect
for the rights of the indigenous people, lose our care for the environment, and forfeit our moral
judgments, in return for creating a lifeless, massive dam to ease the water shortage in our city? A
dilemma such as this requires the strongest will. I go against this project in its entirety.

It is important to note the necessity of the infrastructure. The only purpose known for its
construction is to solve a recurring water shortage issue. Good intentions support it, of course.
However, outside that reason rests questionable factors that require great ecological and
environmental judgement. The Dumagats are a major indigenous community located in Luzon,
Philippines deserving their own peace and tranquility in the land that they occupy. They hunt, fish,
and farm beside a river where they reside. The development of the dam will require them, and other
communities to relocate, abandon their living, and start a new somewhere else. It would be
advantageous on our side, but thousands of acres of their farmland would suffer. This demonstrates a
society that is vulnerable and unfit for this kind of sudden change. According to the environmental
integrity principle of sustainability, any human activity or economic advances should not unduly
disrupt the environment and human communities located in the area. The proposal fully violates this
principle regardless of whether it solves an issue or improves life. It leads to environmental
degradation and the exploitation of the rights of indigenous tribes. It is argued that there is a greater
benefit in shifting our focus to the greater good because there is no doubt that millions of people in
Metro Manila suffer water shortages. But to think that building a dam would be the only solution
would infer a linear way of thinking. One alternative to constructing a dam to solve water shortages
is implementing water conservation and management strategies. This involves efficient use of
existing water resources, reducing wastage, and employing technologies to optimize water usage in
agriculture, industry, and households. If the dam were constructed, however, it would be smart to
demonstrate civility to the indigenous people by integrating them into our society and subsidizing
them and their families by providing them opportunities within the urban landscape or wherever they
may choose to reside. All of us must align our views to the equity principle of sustainability and the
deep ecology theory in radical ecological philosophy. Respectively, these philosophies promote the
conservation of our natural resources for the use of future generations and see indigenous people as
equals whose worth is no different than ours.

The dilemma of choosing what is good is up to one’s judgement of existing facts and moral
freedom. On one hand, you choose to respect the rights of the few thousands of the indigenous
Dumagat tribe and other local communities, on the other, you disregard their concerns and save
millions of Filipinos the trouble of water shortages. I chose the latter because a rich and large
biodiversity is involved. It will never come back once the dam is built, and the ecosystem will be
endangered. The people of the Dumagat tribe strongly depend on the rivers, taking these away from
Jacob Carbonell 10/17/23
12 - Titanium Intro to Philosophy
Position Paper - Defend the Environment

them would be like taking their own life away. To address the issue the government can definitely opt
for other solutions which include the efficient use of existing resources and employing technologies
to optimize water usage. Human beings possess the abilities of being prudent in our actions, and
frugal in our management of resources. May we use these virtues in our everyday lives, influencing
us to think about what is best for our environment, the people within that environment, and how we
can develop it without causing harm.