This year's National Environmental Law Enforcement (NELE) Summit will place a focus on aging environment and natural resources (ENR) laws that need to be revisited, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Roy A. Cimatu said Tuesday, July 13.

According to Cimatu, holding the NELE summit during the current coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is "a good opportunity to revisit the environmental law enforcement (ELE) components to make sure they are updated, and to make sure that the policies are relevant and timely."

"There could never be a much better time for holding the NELE summit, as it is during this quarantine that we have more challenges in apprehending environmental law violators who are taking advantage of the immobility and lesser resources that we have," he said.

The 4th iteration of the summit will be held from July 14 to 16.

Cimatu said the NELE Summit 2021 is "especially significant, especially when most laws are already 20 years old and older, and during this time that the agency gears up for the creation of an Enforcement Bureau."

"The previous NELE Action Plan has already expired last 2020. With this summit, we hope to create a new action plan that would serve the needs of the ever-changing and evolving modern society," added the DENR chief.

With the theme, "Sustaining inter-agency collaborations for intensified ELE towards a better environment amidst pandemic,” the NELE Summit has been a venue for updating the latest developments on ELE, such as new laws and policies, implementing guidelines, programs, and tools and technologies.

It has also been the venue for ensuring continuous coordination and cooperation among the agencies involved and giving recognition to partner-agencies and institutions, as well as individuals.

During the summit, participants are expected to share their respective agencies’ and branches’ major highlights or milestones on ELE for the last 15 years; identify the contribution of the agencies in mainstreaming environmental and natural resources protection in the national strategies and policies; and formulate responsive strategies that will expedite actions for urgent ENR concerns in support of Philippine development.

They are also expected to receive information on the state of the environment, that is, state of the forest and protected areas including the caves and wildlife resources; and urban environment and marine and coastal areas including the fishery resources.

They will also review selected ELE technologies and identify needed advancement to cope with the current enforcement needs and changes, and assess the implementation and update the ELE action plan.