'Wawa watershed key to solving MM flash floods'

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is studying the possibility of putting up a large water impounding facility near the Wawa watershed in Montalban, Rizal to reduce the risk of destructive flash floods in Metro Manila.

Science Secretary Mario Montejo said the agency has already started a study to determine if the area could hold up to 50 million cubic meters of water.

Montejo said that during the onslaught of tropical storm “Ondoy” in September 2009, about 105 million cubic meters of floodwater rushed down from the Sierra Madre Mountains and caused the Marikina-Pasig River to overflow.

On Sept. 26 last year, Ondoy brought an unusual amount of rains that inundated Metro Manila and nearby provinces, leaving over a hundred persons dead and thousands of families homeless. 

He said the proposed project is necessary to determine if the area could hold the 50 cubic meters of floodwater for at least eight hours to avoid deadly flooding in low-lying areas in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

 “This is the cheapest flood control project which could only cost about less than a billion,” Montejo told reporters, adding the design could use moving barriers. 

He said the water impoundment facility could also be used as water reservoir to augment the water requirements in Metro Manila.

Montejo said they will present the project to President Aquino if the study yielded positive results. 

The San Lorenzo Ruiz Water Development Corp. had proposed to convert the Wawa watershed into a dam and said it would be the answer to Metro Manila’s water woes.