Toledo folk worry that heavy-duty digging will worsen flooding

Who is digging the Sapangdaku River in Toledo City and selling the deposits of sand and gravel?

Several residents in barangay Cambangug worry that the constant excavation of the river bed would lead to flooding and landslides when rains come.

“Kuyaw naman ug modako ang tubig… Naa pud pagdahili sa yuta (Its very dangerous if the water level would rise… There are also risks of landslides),” said 48-year-old Caridad Rico of sitio Pansol in barangay Magdugo.

She said for many residents, crossing the river daily has become a fearful task with continuous operations of sand and gravel extraction in the riverbed.

When a CDN news team visited the area Wednesday, two back hoes were digging in the center of the river.

A “river rechanneling” project was ordered by Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia last March, after she suspended or refused to renew permits of 25 sand and gravel operators, said Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) head Nerces Bispo.

Bispo said this was needed to widen part of the river that was a chokepoint.

Three quarry permit holders offered to do the river widening for free using their own heavy equipment. In turn they can sell the “waste” for commercial value.

Bispo said the operations are a source of misunderstanding with the residents, who see the ongoing work as a return of unabated sand and gravel hauling.

“The essence of rechanneling is to stablize the embankment so that nearby residents will not longer get flooded.”

“Tapos ang waste nga material nga makuha ana, mao na ilang commercially i-dispose. Ila nang ibaligya. (The waste material that is excavated is what they commerically dispose. They sell it.)” she said.

Bispo said this was the Capitol’s agreement with permit holders. They take charge of rechanneling the reiver. In exchange, they can sell the river deposits that are removed.

Sapangdaku River, also known by its old name the Hinulawan River(hinaguang bulawan) , is a perennial target of sand and gravel extraction, especially since aggregates are in big demand with the construction boom in Cebu.

A cubic meter of sand and gravel costs about P1,200 each. A 10-wheeler truck carries P14,400 worth of aggregates.

For communities by the river, crossing the Sapangdaku River is their main access to the main road and the Magdugo National High School for the children.

Typhoon Ramon which hit the country in October last year destroyed the only access of barangay Cambungog to the main road – a 20-year-old steel foot bridge built by the Atlas Mining company. A barangay tanod was killed when the bridge gave way.

Rico, a mother of two, said residents have no choice but to cross the river on foot or ride a motorcycle for hire (habal-habal).

But since her family can’t afford a motorcycle taxi ride daily, they walk from home to barangay Magdugo three kilometers away where her two children study in the Magdugo National High School

“Lisod kaayo, oi. Ang mga estudyante dako na ug gasto (It’s really tough. The students spend a lot for transportation),” she said.

“Kuyaw pa gyud ug modako ang tubig. Apil na kami mga residente, dili makalabang (Its dangerous if the water level rises. We residents won’t be able to cross the river.)

Cambang-ug only has an elementary school in the barangay.

As an alternative route, a roundabout 5-kilometer trip by tricycle would cost a student at least P30 for one-way fare to get to the high school.

Over the years, unregulated sand and gravel extraction has widened the Sapangdaku River. The river passes through barangays Magdugo, Cambang-ug, Ilihan, Sangi and Canlumampao.

The abuse prompted the barangay council of Cambang-ug to pass a resolution in October 2011 urging Governor Garcia to permanently shut down sand and gravel operations in the river.

A copy was sent to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Toledo city government.

Quarry operations were suspended four years ago but the ban was lifted on condition that operators would stick to the specified area of of their permit.

When quarry operators didn’t heed this, the governor issued another suspension.

In March, Governor Garcia ordered the widening of the river to deepen the center, address a chokepoint, and allow the current to flow easily.

Bispo said the work aims to shift the flow of water from spilling on the riverbanks where residents are affected by deepening the center of the river.

To stabilize the area, operators transfer the “waste” or excavated river deposits to the side to use as riprap for the riverbank.

She said three quarry permit holders offered to do the river widening for free using their own heavy equipment.

This gave rise to misunderstandings between the Capitol and the barangay officials and residents of Cambang-ug, she said.

According to Bispo, they met several times with barangay residents to clarify that re-channeling the river was different from quarrying it as a commercial activity for sand and gravel.

However, what puzzles City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) head Amador Cavan is the equipment used.

He told CDN that payloaders should be used in rechanneling to level the area, not backhoes which are used to dig.

“Pay loaders unta ang gamiton para level… Unya ang gigamit ron nga back hoe, industrial man na… nagkataas ang depth (They should be using pay loaders to make a level area… But what’s being used are back hoes. That’s for industrial use… it has deepened the river),” he said.

Bamboo sticks painted in red mark the area that is off limits to sand and gravel operators, explained Cavan.

Cavan said that as of January this year, he recommended a moratorium of sand and gravel quarrying in the site.

If a strong earthquake would hit Cebu and destroy the flood gates of the nearby Malubog Dam and NIA Dam, Cavan warned that it could turn into a flood similar to the December 2011 disaster in Cagayan de Oro City.

Barangay captain Epifanio Panugan told CDN that residents worry about their safety.

He said he has stopped issuing barangay clearances to sand and gravel permit holders since November 2011.

Cavan said CENRO has also stopped giving certificates of “no objection” to applications of permit holders.

Bispo also said PENRO has stopped renewing permits to extract sand and gravel.