Atlas useful in managing watersheds completed

A computer-based atlas useful in the assessment of floods, soil erosion, and fire hazards in selected watersheds in the country has been completed.

The collection of maps, charts, and related data and document was the result of a project titled "Geographic Information System (GIS)-based Atlas of Selected Watersheds in the Philippines."

Funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Los Banos-based DOST-Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD), the project was undertaken by a team from the UP Los Baños-College of Forestry and Natural Resources (UPLB-CFNR) headed by Dr. Severo Saplaco.

The atlas covered four major watersheds: Makiling Forest Reserve, Ambuklao-Binga, Angat, and Pantabangan-Carranglan.

The atlas serves as a basic reference for effective watershed management, planning, project implementation, monitoring, and evaluation to ensure the conservation of the country’s natural resources.

Watersheds provide vital resources such as soil, water, forest, range, wildlife, and minerals.

These constitute about 75 percent of the country’s land area. The Philippines has 119 proclaimed and 154 percent priority watersheds with a total land area of 1.38 million hectares and 11.7 million ha, respectively. – RAF