Public, LGUs urged: Use updated hazard maps

MANILA, Philippines —  With a series of typhoons causing widespread devastation across the country, a disaster scientist from the University of the Philippines has urged local government units and the general public to utilize updated maps showing hazards from different disasters.

Mahar Lagmay, executive director of the UP Resilience Institute, said the hazard maps developed under Project NOAH (Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards) are available at noah.up.edu.ph.

“These are very detailed maps, even barangay level or street level, you can see (the hazards),” he said during an interview with “Storycon” on One News yesterday.

“Know your neighborhood, click the place where you are in… and you will see the flood hazard maps, the landslide hazard maps and the storm surge hazard maps,” he added.

Lagmay said the maps can be used alongside weather forecasts and rainfall advisories from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.

“Look at the maps, if you are in an area that is color red or orange, that is a sign for you to go to… a safer place,” he added.

Despite the availability of the hazard maps, Lagmay said there are still local government units that use outdated maps.

“The concept of NOAH is that the business of hazards mapping is not just to map out the hazards, but really to identify the safest places in a given area,” he added.

Project NOAH was adopted by UP, which established the UP Resilience Institute, after the previous administration ceased to provide funding.

Soft solutions

During the interview, Lagmay also urged local officials and policymakers to implement a holistic approach in disaster risk reduction and management.

For instance, in flood control projects, he recommended exhausting soft and nature-based solutions first before implementing solutions that involve building infrastructure such as dikes and other concrete-based projects.

“Soft solutions include making room for the river, making sure that there are no subdivisions or development,” he said, citing rules on easement for waterways.

Nature-based solutions  include planting more trees and making mountains more vegetated to minimize erosion.

He also recommended having retention basins that will hold rainwater, which will be released when it is no longer raining.

“If you start with the soft solutions and nature-based solutions, along with proper planning, the expense for concrete infrastructure will be lower,” he said.