No Need To Declare State Of Calamity

'No need to declare state of calamity'
By Aurea Calica (The Philippine Star) Updated July 22, 2010 12:00 AM

MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang has ruled out declaring a state of calamity in Metro Manila areas severely affected by the water shortage, saying “solutions are in place.”

“There’s no problem with the water shortage – it only affects areas serviced by Maynilad. Manila Water has no problem. La Mesa dam is doing okay. So if necessary, Manila Water can provide assistance to Maynilad, so there is no problem there,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said.

Lacierda said President Aquino has ordered Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson to take charge and solve the problem as soon as possible.

“We’re not blind. In fact, it’s not even correct to say there’s a water crisis because there’s none. We just need to fix Angat dam,” Lacierda said.

Angat dam’s falling water level is largely to blame for the water shortage in Metro Manila’s west zone, which is being serviced by Maynilad. The Angat reservoir is Maynilad’s source of water. Manila Water, which covers the east zone, draws its water supply from La Mesa dam.

Singson said he wanted those responsible for the alleged mismanagement of the Angat dam to be held accountable.

Singson disclosed that dam administrators ordered the release of three months’ supply of water last year and this could have caused the current water shortage.

Lacierda said there was no scenario that would justify a declaration of an emergency because immediate measures were being undertaken to avoid a prolonged and wider water crisis.

“Right now, they’re doing cloud seeding. There is no anticipation of an emergency right now. We are not even looking at that, since the solutions are in place,” he said.

“Several actions are being done like the repair of the leak for the inter-connection. Within two weeks, Manila Water can do the interconnection and the water supply in Angat dam is good for 60 days,” Lacierda said.

Singson declared a water crisis in Metro Manila’s west zone because of Angat dam’s falling water level caused reportedly by the National Power Corp.’s release of excessive volume of water last December when the reservoir was at spilling level.

Manila Water said its consumers could also be affected if the water level in Angat does not improve soon.

Singson said the government was looking at tapping other sources of water for Metro Manila.

Meanwhile, a firm which claims to have exclusive water rights over Wawa dam in Montalban, Rizal said the reservoir’s abundant water supply could have staved off a water shortage in Metro Manila.

San Lorenzo Ruiz Builders and Developers Inc. said “there will definitely be no water shortage in Metro Manila” had the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) and the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) given it the go-signal to develop Wawa dam.

“While Metro Manila is running waterless, there is abundant water from Wawa dam flowing wastefully into the sea for the last 40 years that MWSS abandoned it in 1970 as polluted,” Beatriz Sayson, San Lorenzo Ruiz vice president, said in a statement. She said Wawa dam had been Metro Manila’s main water source from 1908 to 1968.

“Since Angat dam operated, the government, particularly the MWSS and NWRB, neglected Wawa dam’s capacity of providing water supply to Metro Manila,” she said.

“MWSS already knew that a water crisis will happen long before the problem started. It even allowed water concessionaire Manila Water to collect P732 million from its consumers for the development of Wawa dam. But how is it possible if Manila Water has no rights over Wawa dam?”

Water czar

For Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone, President Aquino should declare a state of emergency and assume the role of “water czar” so that forceful and adequately funded measures could be immediately undertaken to address the problem.

He said water shortage is felt not only in Metro Manila but in most parts of the country as well.

“Since he has given up his stewardship of the DILG (Department of the Interior and Local Government), President Aquino should act as the ‘water czar’ so forceful, urgent and adequately funded measures can be done to ease the crippling water shortage now faced by the country, with NCR (National Capital region) at the center of the crisis,” Evardone said.

“Only with President Aquino acting as ‘water czar’ can the government ensure the seamless intrigue-free coordination among the various agencies that are concerned with water distribution and water resource management work,” he said.

He said that in the past the country was saved from widespread water shortage by the rainy season, but erratic climate patterns have made the situation different.

He noted there are too many water agencies, often with overlapping functions. “Only the strong and persuasive hand of the President can make these agencies agree to smoothly coordinate their efforts,” Evardone said.

Aside from the MWSS, the other water agencies are the NWRB, the Local Water Utilities Administration and the National Irrigation Administration and the Bureau of Soil and Water Management of the Department of Agriculture.

Laguna de Bay, which can be tapped as water supply for Metro Manila, is being managed by another entity – the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA).

“Deep in the bosom of the vast bureaucracy there are other agencies dealing with water issues and concerns,” Evardone said.

Compostela Rep. Maria Carmen Apsay said the declaration of a state of calamity is an option that the President may take to mobilize all resources and means available to the government to address the water crisis in some parts of Luzon.

“Action plan towards mitigating effects of climate change should already be put in play as we are clearly experiencing the effects of global warming,” she said.

Marikina Rep. Marcelino Teodoro said such a declaration would enable Mr. Aquino to tap other resources.

“The President should intervene to prevent a nationwide water crisis and declaring a state of calamity would be timely with the conditions of our water facilities,” Teodoro stated.

But Gabriela party-list Rep. Luzviminda Ilagan said a state of calamity should only be declared for Metro Manila.

“If for every local concern he intervenes, he would be micromanaging the country,” Ilagan said.

National security

Sen. Loren Legarda, for her part, said the water shortage is a national security concern that has to be addressed right away.

“Water has become a national security concern. We must reforest not only mountains and watersheds but also plant in urban areas, implement the rainwater collection act, recycle water, introduce hydroinformatics in schools, clean rivers and lakes and bays through LGUs and MMDA,” Legarda said.

“The time to act is now,” Legarda, chairperson of the Senate committee on climate change, added.

“Most of the proclaimed watershed areas have been classified as deteriorating or dying. We lose 1.4 percent of our forest cover a year,” she said.

“Watershed reforestation must be given priority to augment the total water supply of the country. Watershed areas must be protected and rehabilitated,” she added.

Legarda said that focus should be given to small water impounding projects, which she said can provide water to areas that cannot be served by the local water districts.

She also called on all households to heed the call for water conservation.

“On the household level, we can easily adopt practices like gathering and storing rainwater for daily chores. In the community, water recycling facilities and rain collection systems can be built,” Legarda said.

Legarda lamented that the agricultural sector suffers the brunt of any shortage as water supply priority is given to municipal and industrial use.

“We are seeing the serious dangers of a prolonged drought. We should no longer ignore the symptoms of an ailing environment
. There should be greater political and community action for more responsible water use and conservation,” Legarda said.

No act of God

The water problem was a result of ecological neglect and not an act of God, according to Kalookan Bishop Deogracias Iniguez, chairman of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines-Public Affairs Committee.

“Everything was an act of God, but its instrumentalities on how it happened depend on different people and different events. Neglect of ecological concern – that certainly has contributed to this fact. God does not want that but we did it and so through our inaction, through our negligence, these things happen,” he said over Radio Veritas.

But he said some dioceses may start their Oratio Imperata or special prayers to put an end to the water shortage.

Aurea Calica, Philippine Star