Environmental projects in lake region get loans

The Municipal Development Fund Office (MDFO) under the Department of Finance (DOF) confirmed recently five sub-projects and signed the sub-project loan agreements (SPLAs) with the municipalities of Morong and Teresa in Rizal, and Liliw, Kalayaan and Siniloan in Laguna.

The sub-projects, which were identified as priority environmental improvement projects during the conduct of the Laguna de Bay Watershed Environmental Action Planning (LEAP) process in various micro-watersheds in the lake region, are the following: 1) Liliw community-based MRF with composting, 2) Morong integrated solid waste management sub-project, 3) Teresa integrated solid waste management sub-project, 4) Siniloan environmental enhancement sub-project which consists of two components, namely Buruwisan waterfalls and eco-adventure development (BWFED) and Siniloan community-based solid waste management (SCMBSWM), and 5) Kalayaan integrated solid waste management sub-project.

These sub-projects, represen-ting the investments of local go-vernment units (LGU) in water-shed improvement, are in con-gruence with the co-management approach adopted by the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) to ensure the sustainable development of Laguna de Bay and its watershed.

Estimated to cost approxi-mately P41 million, the sub-projects’ financing will be pro-vided by the World Bank and the Royal Netherlands government through the Laguna de Bay Insti-tutional Strengthening and Com-munity Participation Project (LISCOP).

Under the LISCOP, sub-pro-jects falling under the following general themes are expected to be funded: 1) Forestry, inland waters and biodiversity sub-projects, which address watershed ma-nagement issues in the upper watershed and are undertaken by non-lakeshore LGUs; 2) Waste management and sanitation which includes solid waste ma-nagement, communal biogas sys-tems, establishment of trash traps, waste reuse, recycling and com-munity sanitation projects; 3) Eco-tourism such as the development of parks and recreational facilities; and 4) Soil erosion and flood management such as shoreline protection and embankment (inclu-ding tree planting and those ad-dressing vegetation cover) and minor tributary river channel improvement (including clean-up and dredging).