a.         A member who shall be appointed to represent each local government down to barangay level whose territory or portion is included in the protected area. Each appointee shall be the person designated by the head of such LGU, except for the Provincial Development O cer who shall serve ex o cio; b.               A member from non-government organizations who shall be endorsed by heads of organizations which are preferably based in the area or which have established and recognized interest in protected areas; c.         The RED/s in the region/s where such protected area lies shall sit as ex o cio member of the Board and shall serve as adviser/s in matters related to the technical aspect of management of the area; and d.         The RED shall act as chairman of the Board. When there are two (2) or more REDs in the Board, the Secretary shall designate one (1) of them to be the Chairman. Vacancies shall be lled in the same manner as the original appointment. SECTION 12.        Environmental Impact Assessment. – Proposals for activities which are outside the scope of the management plan for protected areas shall be subject to an environmental impact assessment as required by law before they are adopted, and the results thereof shall be taken into consideration in the decision-making process. No actual implementation of such activities shall be allowed without the required Environmental Compliance Certi cate (ECC) under the Philippine Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) system. In instances where such activities are allowed to be undertaken, the proponent shall plan and carry them out in such manner as will minimize any adverse effects and take preventive and remedial action when appropriate. The proponent shall be liable for any damage due to lack of caution or indiscretion. SECTION 13.        Ancestral Lands and Rights Over Them. – Ancestral lands and customary rights and interest arising shall be accorded due recognition. The DENR shall prescribe rules and regulations to govern ancestral lands within protected areas: Provided, that the DENR shall have so power to evict indigenous communities from their present occupancy nor resettle them to another area without their consent: Provided, however, That all rules and regulations, whether adversely affecting said communities or not, shall be subjected to notice and hearing to be participated in by members of concerned indigenous community. SECTION 14.        Survey for Energy Resources. – Consistent with the policies declared in Section 2 hereof, protected areas, except strict nature reserves and natural parks, may be subjected to exploration only for the purpose of gathering information on energy resources and only if such activity is carried out with the least damage to surrounding areas. Surveys shall be conducted only in /