CANDABA -- The Department of Public Works and Highway (DPWH) said that it would need 20,000 hectares of this town if it will pursue the proposed retarding basin designed to control and mitigate flood water from the river and save other towns in Pampanga, Nueva Ecija and Bulacan.
This after the World Bank and consultants from the University of the Philippines completed the study on the proposed construction of a retarding basin at the swamps of Candaba and San Antonio town in Nueva Ecija to solve the perennial flooding in Pampanga.
According to the DPWH officials the proposed retarding basin is a dam built for the storage of surface water for a limited period of time. In a meeting held recently in the province, Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson briefed President Benigno Aquino III, Local Government Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento and Governor Lilia Nanay Pineda that the proposal is part of the completed and approved Pampanga River Basin Flood Control Master Plan which covers the four provinces of Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Bulacan and Tarlac with 3.5 million population and directly affecting 83 municipalities with a catchment area of 10,434 square kilometers.
Singson urged the DPWH officials in Region III and the provincial government to start the series of public consultation among the residents in the would-be affected communities in Candaba and in the nearby towns.
Singson said that the Candaba Retarding Basin, a flood control project is a 60 kilometer, 5 to 6 meter tall ring dike that will cost the national government at least P6-billion including the expenses for the right-of-way, dredging of waterways, strengthening of the embankment and walls.
President Aquino said the allocation of budget for the said project is easy to find but it is hard to convince farm owners and residents to give up their farmlands for the flood control project.
The President said the important thing here is the exercise of political will.
“They might say, we need that, but not on my lands. Use my neighbor's lands for that project,” the President said.
Aquino said he wants to participate in the public consultation but his dilemma is that he has only a few months in office.
Reports have it that the completion of the retarding basin in Candaba will take 8 to 10 years.
Singson said that while doing public consultation, dredging at the mouth of the Pampanga River near Manila bay will be conducted. For her part, Governor Pineda said the project will be of great help in controlling the flooding in the province but the government should first conduct consultation meeting among residents and other officials that will be affected by the construction of the basin.
Governor Pineda assured the national government that she will assist the DPWH and the agencies of the government to help in the conduct of public consultation, in the right-of-way acquisition and in convincing affected farmers to agree to the project.
“We will exercise political will to once and for all solve the perennial problem on floods that devastates our farmlands and fisheries in the 7 towns of Pampanga. There should be a complete solution to the
perennial flooding,” Governor said.
Public works secretary said the department needs to improve the carrying capacities of existing rivers from Manila Bay as the water coming from Sierra Madre and Chico River cannot be contained as it
flow towards the Pampanga River.
The secretary said the national government wants to follow the Dutch principle, “make room for the river”.
“If you don't make room for the river, it will be an inconvenience, it will not know where to run. You need to provide waterways for it,” he said.
When the water from the Pampanga River overflow, the whole Candaba swamp and other Pampanga coastal towns will be submerged including the low lying towns from Bulacan and Nueva
Ecija.
As this situation persists annually, the national government planned to contain the excess water from Pampanga River at the proposed retarding basins in San Antonio, Nueva Ecija and in Candaba.
Singson said the water contained in the retarding basin would be released soon when the water volume along the Pampanga River going to Manila bay becomes stable.
He said the retarding basins are natural floodplains and would be surrounded with dikes where water could be regulated and released towards Manila bay after 3 to 4 days of stay. Meaning the water
would not go anywhere.
“After that the farm owners could still use the farmlands especially during dry season,” he said.
He clarified that the government will only buy the land that would be affected by the construction of dikes for the retarding basin but the swamp and agricultural land inside and within the basin will remain in
the possession of the farm owners.