THE city government of Davao will allot P17 million for the ground delineation of the watershed areas in the city.
During the 6th Watershed Stakeholders Summit held Thursday, June 28, at the Grand Men Seng Hotel, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio said a P17-million budget will be taken from the supplemental budget number 2 of the city government as the environmental tax charged from the businesses in the city are still being under litigation.
“With the enactment of the Davao City watershed protection, conservation, and management ordinance, I call on our partner agencies and stakeholders to support the ground delineation of the city’s watershed that would lead to the identification of the conservation zones, critical slopes, and watershed recharge areas. So you can expect the budget will be charged from the supplemental budget number 2 for 2018 from the city government of Davao,” said the mayor.
Duterte-Carpio added that any future fund needs of the watershed council will be taken from the environmental tax once the litigation had been completed and a decision is made.
The Davao Development Watershed Council currently oversees 176,000 hectares of land stretching 86 kilometers from Bukidnon to Davao del Norte traversing through Davao City.
For her part, Environmental and Natural Resources Davao regional director Ruth M. Tawantawan said the P17 million intended for the ground delineation will be a great help.
“The areas are critical because the water has a huge impact in Davao City. In my presentation, 23 percent of the entire water basin of Davao City is alienable and disposable which means it can be titled, it can be developed to any form. That’s why we need to delineate and ascertain where the allowed areas for cultivation are,” said Tawantawan, who also co-chairs the Davao River Basin Management Alliance (DBRMA).