ASIDE from ghost projects, some flood-control projects are poorly situated and worsen flooding instead of solving the problem, an official of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said.
DENR Undersecretary for Integrated Science Carlos Primo David said the DENR has identified not only ‘ghost flood control projects’ but also projects funded by the government, but did not solve the problem. Instead, they exacerbate flooding because they are poorly situated.
Speaking at the DENR’s budget hearing of the Senate subcommittee on finance led by Senator Loren Legarda on Tuesday, David said these projects are not part of the Master Plan and are not backed by a comprehensive study.
‘What we have noticed is that, okay, we do have ghost projects. We see them, much, much more than what the DPWH is reporting. Secondly, these are not the projects, kumbaga pinakamasama [that are, shall we say, the worst]. What we have are structures that are poorly situated and exacerbate the flooding. They were constructed, but they exacerbate the flooding,’ David said, drawing surprise and dismay from lawmakers.
‘Ginastosan na, nakasama pa [People spent for them, and yet they did more harm]?’ Legarda burst out.
Legarda said the DENR, through the WRMO, should assert its mandate, saying that as far as the DPWH is concerned, it is only mandated to implement infrastructure or hard engineering projects.
‘DENR must know and must approve all flood control masterplans-flood mitigation, adaptation all of that-it should be with you because it’s your mandate to conserve our forests. It’s your mandate to clean our inland waters and seas; their [DPWH’s] only mandate is providing the infrastructure. The two of you should always be talking,’ she said, partly in Filipino.
David was referring to a draft National Flood Management Master Plan being pushed by the DENR Water Resource Management Office, headed by him in a concurrent capacity.
Through the WRMO, the DENR is monitoring flood control projects of the DPWH.
He said the DENR uses satellite imagery to monitor flood control projects and through ground validation by the Water Resources Utilization Section of the DENR Regional Offices.
He explained that in 2023, the subcommittee on water resources, which handles all water projects that go through the program convergence budgeting of the Department of Budget Management when agencies submit their projects for funding, as chair, decided that the DENR should monitor these projects.
‘When the committee decided in 2023 that we should monitor this, we wanted to know if there are projects with convergence with water supply. We monitored these on the ground and from our office, we use satellite imagery,’ says David.
The draft National Flood Master Plan, which promotes Nature-Based Solutions to flooding problems, names infrastructure as one, but not the most important component.
‘This is different from the Master Plan of the DPWH that is infrastructure-heavy,’ he said.
David said the core principles of the Masterplan are anchored on Watershed Management, Stormwater Impoundment, Green-Grey Infrastructure, and Risk-Sensitive Land Use Planning.
‘If our watersheds are not intact, then pretty soon all the rain will transform into runoff. Secondly, we promote impoundment instead of diverting water to the ocean, meaning river dikes,’ said David.
He said storm or rainwater impoundment was a strategy of the Philippine government back in the 1960s. He said this is also where the LGUs come into play, by implementing rainwater harvesting under the Rainwater Harvesting Act.
Pitching calls for more water convergence projects between concerned government agencies, the DENR Secretary Raphael Lotilla said the agency has identified 15 multipurpose dams, projects that were the subject of feasibility studies.
‘They would be ready for implementation in the 2026 budget, but it’s not part of our budget. What we want to show is that we can have convergence of all that has been mentioned. In addition, the National Irrigation Administration has 81 multipurpose projects that would involve water retention and detention, and they can be used for; potable water, irrigation, agriculture, and incidentally, even in tourism and hydropower,’ Lotilla said.
In Claveria, he shared that a multipurpose dam was inaugurated by President Marcos, and people now enjoy irrigation and tourism. The DENR, he said, is now looking at the potable water component of the project.