By Vhioly Rosatazo
BULACAN — San Miguel Corporation Chairman and CEO Ramon S. Ang has reiterated the steps undertaken by his group to clean, deepen and widen rivers in various parts of Luzon, including major waterways in Bulacan.
Ang said a major part of the effort involves removing mud, silt and accumulated garbage that have obstructed the normal flow of water in rivers. The company’s river rehabilitation initiatives include waterways in Bulacan and the Marilao-Meycauayan-Obando River System.
More importantly, Ang stressed that the New Manila International Airport should not automatically be blamed for flooding in Bulacan.
Flooding has long been a problem in the province, even before the airport project was built. Instead, he said the entire water system must be examined—from the mountains and tributaries to the rivers that are expected to carry and discharge huge volumes of water.
When heavy rains hit the upland areas of Luzon, massive amounts of water rush down from the mountains toward low-lying communities.
If rivers are clogged, shallow, or filled with silt, they may no longer have enough capacity to handle the surge, causing water to overflow into nearby areas.
This, Ang emphasized, is where the broader flood problem must be addressed.
Rather than blaming a single project, authorities need to assess the entire watershed, including rivers, drainage systems, esteros, tributaries and natural waterways.
SMC’s river-cleanup program is aimed at increasing the carrying capacity of waterways so they can accommodate and move larger volumes of water without quickly overflowing.
The bigger question remains: If billions of pesos are being spent on flood-control projects every year, why do communities continue to suffer from severe flooding?
Pointing fingers will not solve the problem.
What is needed is a clear and comprehensive study of where floodwaters originate, how they move, where they accumulate, and why they fail to reach the sea quickly.
Every flood affects more than roads. It threatens livelihoods, homes, businesses and the future of thousands of Bulakenyos.
The fight against flooding should not become a contest over who to blame.
The priority should be determining where the water actually comes from and why it cannot flow efficiently downstream.
If massive volumes of water are rushing from the mountains toward low-lying areas of Bulacan, then the problem must be addressed from the watershed down to the communities—not just around one project, one city or one name.
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