NEDA OKs multibillion-peso Pasig River rehab

MANILA, Philippines- The National Economic and Development Authority board has approved a multibillion-peso project that seeks to clean up the Pasig River, one of the country's main rivers, which is now heavily polluted because of decades of neglect. According to NEDA documents, the newly approved Pasig River Dredging Project will cost about P5.04 billion. It involves the removal and containment of an estimated 2.83 million cubic meters of debris/sediment materials in the river covering a 17-kilometer stretch. The project will also cover the river's extension into Manila Bay of two kilometers from Del Pan Bridge to the Napindan hydraulic flood control gate. Of the total P5.04 billion, 89.29 percent or P4.5 billion will be sourced from foreign financing through the Belgian super subsidy facility, a soft loan governed and financed by the Belgian government. The remaining P539.85 million will be provided by the Philippine government. The project, which will be implemented by the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission, will be divided into three components/areas and will be implemented over a three-year period, starting from second quarter of 2008 up to 2011. The NEDA said the project is in line with the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan 2004 to 2010 to create a healthier environment for the population through improving water quality in the Pasig River. "It is also supportive of the thrust to mitigate the occurrence of natural disasters through the implementation of structural measures such as keeping at the optimum the conveyance capacities of existing river channel floodways through dredging and desiltation," the NEDA said. The project is included in the 2007 to 2010 Comprehensive and Integrated Infrastructure Program. - GMANews.TV