Parañaque reclamation plan to cause floods, environment damage —Villar

Senator Cynthia Villar on Saturday warned that the reclamation project being pushed by the Parañaque government will cause flooding in Cavite, Paranaque, and Las Pinas and will be detrimental to the viability of the Las Piñas Wetland Park.

Villar, chairperson of the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, made this statement ahead of the public hearings being set on October 1 and 2 for the creation of a 287-hectare artificial island off the coast of Manila Bay in the territorial jurisdiction of Parañaque.

“The project will be building on the buffer zone of the Las Pinas-Paranaque Wetland Park. This should not be allowed to proceed because it will hamper the free flow of water which is critical to the survival of the wetland ecosystem,” Villar said.

Moreover, she said the project will destroy 35 hectares mangrove forest which is the spawning ground of several species of fish in Manila Bay, supporting the livelihood of 300,000 fisher folk.

Also, Villar disputed the claim of the project proponent and Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez that flooding will be prevented by the Imus catchment basin.

She pointed out that the infrastructure was constructed for the existing problem in Cavite brought about by the Cavite Expressway, and the reclamation project was not considered when the road was planned.

“According to former DPWH Secretary Singson, the Cavitex Expressway is supposed to be a viaduct according to plan but instead, they reclaimed Manila Bay and constructed the expressway on top of the reclaimed road which causes so much flooding in Imus, Bacoor and other places in Cavite. To address this, DPWH built the Imus catchment basin. This project is not intended to solve flooding in Paranaque and Las Piñas,” Villar said.

Villar appealed to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to consider the buffer zone of the wetland park before approving any reclamation in the area.

Further, she voiced her opposition to the 320-hectare Bacoor reclamation project which also proposes to build on the wetland’s buffer zone

Under Republic Act 11038 or the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System Act, the 175-hectare wetland situated South of Manila Bay is a protected area. It is also listed as one of the seven areas in the country declared as a wetland of international importance by the Ramsar Convention because of its critical role in the survival of threatened, restricted-range and congregatory bird species. —LBG, GMA News