Cagayan River rehabilitation efforts begin February 2

MANILA, Philippines — Rehabilitation efforts in Cagayan River are set to begin on Tuesday (February 2).
The project will include the dredging of sandbars and widening of the river.
The non-structure intervention is estimated to cost around P2.3 billion which will run from this year until 2025.
Relocation of affected residents near the river, such as those in Tuguegarao City, is also part of the rehabilitation.
“We have to relocate them. We are communicating with the National Housing Authority but we are setting aside parts of our budget for the relocation of those who will be affected and those who are perennially affected by the flooding,” explained Mayor Jefferson Soriano of Tuguegarao City.
Massive tree-planting activity is also another part of the long-term mitigation program to prevent future floods.
Meanwhile, the Committee on Agriculture and Food on Friday (January 29) resumed the inquiry on the massive flooding that affected areas near the Cagayan and Marikina rivers during the onslaught of tropical cyclone Ulysses last year.
The National Irrigation Administration (NIA) presented their plan for the revision of Magat Dam protocol especially on releasing water.
NIA Administrator General Ricardo Visaya (Ret.) said that from the current six hours, activation of warning stations shall be done 24 hours before the pre-release of water.
This will be accompanied by the information given to the public through text messaging.
Releasing of water before the landfall of a tropical cyclone will also be carried out one day ahead to avoid massive floods in the community.
Information on the water outflow from the dam will be written in layman’s terms so that it can easily be understood and allow the community to prepare ahead of time.
Also, local government units will be required to acknowledge receipt of the warning given by the authorities.
“May mga reklamo noon na hindi daw sila na inform although the Magat River Integrated Irrigation System did their best in informing them. We would like now that when they receive our warnings or any advice, we would like this to be acknowledged by them,” Visaya said.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRMMC) is also planning to create a dam safety protocol and a Committee on Dams that will monitor all dams across the country.
It is also recommending a bill that will institutionalize the Dam Safety Program of the country.
“If we now have a good enabling environment for dams, we will now be able to attract more investment,” noted Office of the Civil Defense Director Tecson John Lim.
For this initiative, the government is seeking expert advice from Engineer Roderick dela Cruz, a Filipino dam safety expert, who is based in the US where he manages around 80 dams in Southern California. MNP (with reports from Rey Pelayo)