A disaster scientist said on Friday that the flood control projects in Metro Manila can only manage minor flooding.
Mahar Lagmay, executive director of the University of the Philippines Resilience Institute, said that there’s no flood control infrastructure yet in Metro Manila that can handle massive flooding.
“Yung mga flood control projects natin, ang kaya niya as of the moment, ang nakikita ko ay yung mga maliliit at katamtamang baha,” he told Super Radyo dzBB.
(Based on my observation, our flood control projects, as of the moment, can only manage small to medium floods.)
“Kapag ang usapan na po natin ay ga-Ondoy na baha, iba pong usapin yun, dahil mao-overwhelm pa rin yung infrastructure. Kasi hindi po natin kayang gumawa pa ng para sa buong Metro Manila ng infrastructure na kakayanin yung napakalaking mga baha.”
(But if we talk about floods that are comparable to what experienced during tropical cyclone Ondoy, that would overwhelm the infrastructure. We cannot afford yet to build an infrastructure in Metro Manila that can handle a major flood.)
On Thursday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. blamed climate change and improper waste management for the massive floods in the country.
But Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero questioned the effectiveness of the present flood control measures and the use of the annual budget allocated for these projects.
According to Escudero, around P255 billion was allocated for the DPWH’s flood control projects in the P5.768-trillion national budget for 2024, which he previously tagged as disproportionately large compared to other critical sectors.
Further, Lagmay said that proper land use planning in the capital region would help prevent disastrous floods.
“Ang isang nakikita kong malaki among others is that ang Metro Manila ay napaka-congested…Ito ay congested, crowded pati yung mga lugar na natural na parte ng ilog,” he said.
(Among the major reasons for the flooding is the congestion in Metro Manila…It is so congested that even areas that are naturally part of rivers are also crowded.)
“So babalik tayo sa land use planning. Kailangan i-consider natin yung mga lugar, iwas sa mga bahaing lugar para kahit dumating yung baha, wala tayong pinaguusapang disaster.”
(So we will return to the topic of land use planning. We should avoid building in flood-prone areas so there will be no disaster when the flood comes.)
Metro Manila was placed under a state of calamity on Wednesday due to the massive flooding in several cities caused by the Southwest Monsoon (Habagat) enhanced by tropical cyclone Carina.. —Vince Angelo Ferreras/VBL, GMA Integrated News
