An international environment watchdog voiced concern over reports on the proposed transfer of the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) to Cordova town, saying the large reclamation needed for this would damage coastal areas.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea. It’s more expensive to build because you have to reclaim the land,” said Jose Ma. Lorenzo Tan, vice chairman and CEO of World Wide Fund for Nature-Philippines (WWF).
Tan was in Cebu yesterday to announce the results of a climate change study of four cities in the country. In an interview, he said reclaiming land in Cordova town may result in a rise of sea levels similar to Iloilo’s reclamation projects.
The airport transfer is being pushed by Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City’s south district, backed by an unsolicited offer by SM Prime Holdings to buy the 300-hectare airport lot.
Osmeña said the airport transfer would give more space for expansion and benefit Cordova town, which will undertake its own reclamation project, and decongest traffic in the cities of Cebu and Lapu-Lapu
The airport management has a long-running tax dispute with host Lapu-Lapu City over real estate taxes, which airport authorities insist they are exempt from paying.
Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza yesterday said any relocation, if approved, would take years and millions of pesos in funding.
She also pointed out that expansion work is ongoing in the airport.
The climate change study of four cities titled “Business Risk Assessment and Management of Climate Change Impacts” was done in partnership with the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) Foundation.
“It’s very clear that the number one problem in the city is the environment,” said Cebu City Mayor Rama, who opposes the airport transfer to Cordova town.
The study showed Cebu ranked third in the level of vulnerability to climate change.
Despite this, Tan said Cebu can reinvent itself by investing in “climate-proof” infrastructure and technology.
The WWF urged businessmen and government to use adaptive strategies such as drainage systems.
It also recommended moving coastal roads and communities to higher ground and investing in natural solutions like mangrove forests to parry inbound storms.
“Each city faces its own set of advantages and disadvantages in adapting to a sustainable future,” said Tan.
Mayor Rama, who supported the study’s recommendations, said he will tap the private sector’s help in achieving sustainable development instead of relying on the City Council, which is dominated by Osmeña allies.
“Never mind the council, I need the private sector to be part (of this). This is an administration of we, not them,” he said. STC Intern Tweeny Malinao and Correspondent Norman Mendoza