Let’s plan to stop flooding, says Paje

Environment Secretary Ramon Paje INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—The number of rivers and creeks in Metro Manila has dropped from more than 600 in the 1950s to barely 200 today due to the construction of buildings and other structures on waterways, making the metropolis prone to heavy flooding.

The situation has prompted Environment Secretary Ramon Paje to call for a comprehensive development plan centered on adapting to climate change in order to mitigate the effects of typhoons and the habagat (southwest monsoon) not only in Metro Manila but in other urban areas throughout the country.

In a statement, Paje stressed the urgency of coming up with proper development planning in light of increasingly destructive weather disturbances caused by climate change.

He noted that while Metro Manila and its surrounding provinces—Laguna, Bulacan and Cavite—had waterways that naturally drained water into Manila Bay and Laguna Lake, the lack of proper urban planning had made these areas flood-prone.

“We have allowed buildings to be constructed over our natural waterways, completely covering them and effectively reducing the number of creeks, esteros and rivers in Metro Manila by more than two-thirds, from more than 600 in the 1950s to less than 200 today,” Paje said.

He pointed out that heavy siltation and clogging in the existing waterways had caused an “urban thrombosis” in which the creeks and rivers could no longer accommodate the volume of rain brought by the habagat and typhoons.

“With the country experiencing urban growth, we really cannot avoid building, but we have to submit to correct urban planning or else we will continue experiencing these calamities,” Paje said.

The environment secretary said the government had begun efforts with the Cabinet cluster on climate change to draft a 50-year master plan that would involve the use of geohazard maps as a guide in the urban planning of local government units.—Jeannette I. Andrade