Tugade: Dredging of Cagayan River, reforestation key to prevent flooding

Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade on Sunday suggested conducting dredging on the Cagayan River in order to help prevent a repeat of the massive flooding in the Cagayan Valley Region.

Tugade made the suggestion during the situation briefing with President Rodrigo Duterte in Cagayan amid the heavy flooding experienced in the region due to Typhoon Ulysses.

During the briefing, Tugade said that aside from stopping deforestation, the dredging of the Cagayan River is one solution to prevent flooding in the area.

"Nakikita dito ang dalawang pangangailangan. Number one, yung itigil ang pagputol ng puno dito, yung reforestation program kailangan ituloy. Pangalawa, yung tinatawag na dredging sa Cagayan River," he said.

"Kung hindi magagawa ang dalawang yan, paulit-ulit na mangyayari ang pagbaha dito," he added.

Full capacity

Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu pointed out that Cagayan River was already in full capacity when heavy rainfall brought by Ulysses came.

"The volume of water na bumagsak is more than capacity or capability of the Cagayan River. Puno na yung Cagayan River, marami pang naiwan na bumagsak. That resulted the flooding. It happened several years before na this area is very prone to flooding," he said.

Cimatu pointed out that there is a bottleneck in one area of the river that slows down the flow of water during heavy rains, resulting in an upstream that causes flooding in Tuguegarao City and other towns.

The said bottleneck is underneath a bridge. If it is to be widened, as per the suggestion in a previous study of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, then the bridge has to be demolished, he said.

"But I think we can do some engineering interventions. I talked to a geologist kanina, I told him to report to Manila para pag-usapan what will be the remedy of that," Cimatu said.

"If we don't touch the width of the river, laliman lang natin yun, dredge it para yung total volume, it will just be the same as widening it," he added.

Cimatu also said he has already approved the request of Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba for a 30-kilometer dredging from the mouth of the river.

Reforestation

To ensure reforestation, Tugade recalled the suggestion of one of his regional directors to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board to require individuals and cooperatives applying for a license or franchise from the agency to plant trees.

"Kung may kooperatiba ka diyan, minimum 500 trees kada prangkisa na bibigay ko sayo. Kung gagawin namin yan, yung pagtatanim ng puno doon sa pag-issue ng prangkisa o lisensya, marami tayong matatamnan," he said.

"So I'm coordinating very closely with Sec. Roy Cimatu kung saan i-identify nila yung mga lugar na kung saan pwedeng taniman. Kung kukuha sila ng prangkisa sa akin, I will make this nationwide, part of their responsibility is really to plant trees," he added.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said he and Cimatu already have a plan with regards to tree planting, along with the Department of Education and Commission on Higher Education.

"Noong araw, sa mga eskwelahan, yung mga bata bago mag-graduate yan, required yan magtanim ng puno. Ini-inspect pa mismo yung mga bahay," Año said.

"So we are 110 million Filipinos. If we can plant 100 million every six months, that's 200 million a year. So nagpaplano kami, we can start at January," he added.

Meanwhile, Tugade also said he and Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III will be donating 100 units fiber glass fishing boats for the residents of the coastal areas in Region II.

"Kapag fiber glass, hindi lang magagamit yan pang-fishing, pati sa rescue operation din," he said.

"Nag-usap kami ni Sec. Bebot [Bello] diyan at magtutulungan kami na before the end of this year, Sec. Bebot, naka-position tayo nang 100," he added. —JST, GMA News