Marcos wants regular declogging, trash collection to curb QC flooding

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Friday underscored the need to establish a system to ensure consistent cleanup and declogging of waterways along Quezon City to reduce persistent flooding in certain areas.

Marcos said this as he led the inspection of the QC drainage improvement project along G. Araneta Avenue, as part of the government’s intensified flood mitigation efforts under the “Oplan Kontra Baha” program.

“Ang susunod na problema na kailangan nating lutasin ang pagkolekta ng basura. Dahil ang nangyayari dito, pagka pumapasok na ‘yung tubig, dala ‘yung basura, nababara na naman ‘yung ating mga drainage,” the President said.

(The next problem that we have to solve is the garbage collection. When there is heavy rain, the garbage blocks our drainage, resulting in flooding.)

“Kaya't magpapatulong tayo sa local government, hihingi tayo ng tulong kay Mayor Joy [Belmonte], at sabihin natin kung pwede, ay gawa tayo ng sistema para tuloy-tuloy ang pag-declogging,” he added.

(That's why we will ask the local government for help, through Mayor Joy Belmonte, to create a system for declogging.)

Citing stories from residents, Marcos said that declogging efforts are already being implemented, but only on a small scale.

“Sa dami ng basura ay kailangan talaga meron tayong isang sistema para alam na natin kapag uulan ng malakas, ay tiyakin natin na lahat ng basura ay makolekta at pagkatapos ng ulan, ay may madadala pa ring basura, magde-declogging ulit,” he explained.

(With the amount of garbage, we really need to have a system so that when it rains heavily, all the garbage is collected and after the rain, there will be declogging again.)

Marcos conducted a similar inspection along G. Araneta in May, which he said was among the critical flood-prone locations the government is prioritizing.

The G. Araneta drainage improvement project spans 758 meters from Kaliraya Street to E. Rodriguez Sr. Avenue and involves the installation of two 1.5-meter-diameter high-density polyethylene (HDPE) pipes beneath the roadway.

The new system supplements the existing 0.91-meter-diameter drainage line beneath the sidewalk. —LDF, GMA News