• RICHARD T. CABALLERO JR.
Due to a lack of storage facilities, which caused the temporary stoppage of clearing operations at the Ibid Creek in Barangay Tamburong, La Castellana, Negros Occidental, authorities are now seeking a permit to haul the accumulated sediments outside the protected area of the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park.
La Castellana Incident Management Team Commander Remuel Lajo clarified yesterday that the province has temporarily ceased clearing operations at the creek due to the lack of a storage facility.
However, the clearing operations at the upper portion of the creek led by the Department of Public Works and Highways Negros Island Region (DPWH-NIR) have already started.
“The province and its equipment did not yet resume their operations because they are still waiting for the permit that will allow the sediments to be stored outside the protected area,” Lajo said, citing the need for more storage facilities.
Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) Head Irene Bel Ploteña initially reported that the nursery and compound of the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) within the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park (MKNP), where the accumulated sediments were initially transferred, is now full and cannot cater to more debris, which is the reason the province ceased clearing operations.
The DPWH-NIR has provided additional units of backhoe and dump truck to hasten the operations.
“They are now prioritizing the creek’s upstream area to get rid of the huge rocks,” Lajo added, expressing that if rocks were not cleared, it is potentially dangerous if they are swept downstream.
Moreover, based on his report, the creek is getting deeper, which prevented the floodwaters from entering the highway and nearby residential areas.
Out of 28,000 cubic meters (cbm) that need to be cleared from the waterways of the Ibid Creek, the latest report said that only 3,000 cbm has been removed and transferred to the MKNP.*
