EDITORIAL - Cleaning up

As the second anniversary of the cataclysmic flooding spawned by Typhoon “Ondoy” approached, residents of Taguig teamed up with Australian diplomats and other volunteers the other day in cleaning up Hagonoy Creek in Lower Bicutan. The activity marked Clean Up the World day, which coincided with the day Ondoy (international code name Ketsana) started forming northwest of Palau in 2009. 

What has the country done since then in improving its preparedness for natural calamities? A Doppler radar has been acquired to improve the accuracy of predicting the amount of rainfall, but more Dopplers are needed. More boats for rescue in flooded communities have been acquired. Presumably, dam operators and local government units have improved coordination and warning systems for the release of water during typhoons. Reforestation and sustainable forestry programs are being pursued.

But illegal logging remains a problem, and informal settlers continue to occupy waterways, floodplains and natural catch basins. The cleanup of Hagonoy Creek, along with periodic cleanups of Manila Bay, also show that old habits die hard, despite the nation’s experiences with deadly natural calamities. During last Friday’s cleanup, the water in Hagonoy Creek was barely visible in the garbage. Filipinos continue to be unmindful of the fact that garbage clogs waterways and causes massive flooding.

Clogged waterways, human encroachments on natural floodplains, and climate change were blamed for the massive destruction caused by Ondoy. The typhoon made landfall in the Philippines on Sept. 24, and barreled directly toward Metro Manila. By Sept. 25, the capital region and neighboring provinces confronted rainfall so heavy floodwaters rose several feet within a few hours, sweeping away cars and homes and destroying millions of pesos worth of crops. In Pangasinan, water was released from dams without proper warning, aggravating the massive flooding. Nearly a hundred people were reported killed in the first day; the official death toll eventually reached 464. Damage to crops and property was placed at more than P11 billion.

Weather forecasters said the amount of rainfall brought by Ondoy was unusually heavy, and later compounded by Typhoon “Pepeng” in the Laguna de Bay floodplain. No weather disturbance of Ondoy proportions hit the country in 2010, and this year the country has been spared so far from such a typhoon. But the nation remains vulnerable to destructive natural calamities. Reducing that vulnerability can start with a sustained cleanup of our own communities.