The Masungi Georeserve Foundation Inc. leads opposition to the 603-megawatt wind farm by Rizal Wind Energy Corporation over potential harm to the watershed and karst landscape. Caretakers say the project overlaps protected areas in Antipolo and Tanay. The DENR rejected their petition for a cease-and-desist order, stating the energy firm is compliant.
The Masungi Georeserve Foundation Inc. (MGFI), which manages the popular ecotourism site Masungi Georeserve, actively opposes the proposed 603-megawatt wind farm by Rizal Wind Energy Corporation (RWEC). The project would span villages in Antipolo and Tanay, within the Upper Marikina River Basin Protected Landscape. A coalition of green groups led by Masungi warns it could damage the watershed, the Sierra Madre, and the karst conservation area.
"The issue is not whether turbines sit on exposed limestone, but whether the project footprint overlaps a designated karst landscape – which it does, based on the project’s own ECC," said Billie Dumaliang, managing trustee of the foundation.
According to the project's Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC), its coordinates are near natural tourist attractions like Masungi Georeserve, Nagpatong Rock Formation, and Mount Purro Nature Reserve, spanning 13 ridges. The main substation would be in Barangay San Jose, Antipolo, Rizal.
In 2024, Masungi petitioned the DENR's Environmental Management Bureau for a cease-and-desist order against the energy firm's "unauthorized activities." However, on July 30, 2025, the DENR denied it, stating no operations or construction have occurred since the ECC was issued in 2020. "No sufficient basis has been established to conclude the existence of grave or irreparable environmental damage," the agency said.
Within a month, Masungi filed a motion for reconsideration, asserting some coordinates fall inside the georeserve and a reforestation site under a 2017 DENR contract. Additionally, the DENR canceled its contract with Masungi's developer in March 2025.
Vena Energy, RWEC's parent company, claims it takes "proactive measures like site selection" to minimize environmental impact. While this is a renewable energy initiative, the opposition stems from safeguarding sensitive conservation areas.
