A DAVAO City Councilor revealed that he will be investigating the issue of the Tamugan River having a low water level due to the alleged rerouting of its water by resort owners.
In an ambush interview on Tuesday morning, August 29, Councilor Temujin "Tek" Ocampo said that as chairperson of the committee on environment and natural resources of the 20th City Council, he would look into it, because they were able to talk about it with his committee members during the committee hearing.
He said during the committee watershed management council meeting, they were able to discuss the current issue about the watershed and the natural environment of the city.
The committee deliberated about the issue of the low water level of the Tamugan River but he said that the level is slowly rising due to constant rain.
The alleged diverting of water routes by resort owners was seen as one of the reasons the water level of the river was low.
Ocampo expressed that there were also allegations that Apo Agua is siphoning water through their bulk water supply facilities. But Ocampo was quick to add that there is no proof of this allegation and that the council was not able to hear Apo Agua’s side concerning this issue since they were not present during the council meeting.
“Actually, we need to hear also the side of Apo Agua and Water District in general about sa (the) Bulk Water Project, ginapaabot pa nato (we are still waiting for their side),” Ocampo said.
Apart from the alleged resort owners diverting water from the river, there are also stories that farm owners are rerouting water to their farms but the committee is still in the process of verifying it, Ocampo added.
He added this is the reason he is looking into conducting a committee meeting to verify and know the truth behind these allegations, especially since there is still no evidence that something has happened in the area.
Ocampo said that he invited the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (Cenro), City Planning, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and every concerned agency that is related to the issue at hand. He added that he would try to invite Apo Agua to attend the committee meeting, however, he is not sure whether they could attend since they were not present during the session.
Based on the existing data of the committee, the Tamugan River is a Class A river and is suitable for consumption. It will be declared a protected area through an ordinance, which is still pending in the council, to strengthen the effectiveness of the law and prevent illegal activities from occurring within the area, such as the building of structures and even houses. RGP