Protocols: Protect the dams or prevent floods

Given the severe flooding in Luzon following typhoons “Pedring” and “Quiel” that visited Luzon one after the other, it is important and timely to revisit and identify any gaps in the existing government policies, programs, and systems for reducing disaster risks. And most importantly, the end-goal is to seek solutions that are practical, appropriate, sustainable and climate-sensitive for our communities facing great risks every time very strong typhoons visit us here.

Towards this end, President Aquino has temporarily designated Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Rogelio Singson as the government’s “water czar” to look into all concerns regarding dam water releases being blamed for the severe flooding spawned by the two recent typhoons.

In the meeting of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) held last Sunday in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City, Singson already proposed to the President to put up a catch basin so that water from the mountains during typhoons will not directly flow to the lowlands.

P-Noy earlier bared his plans to put up a “super body” that would manage the entire water supply in the country. He rightly noted there are too many departments and agencies involved with water management, but it seems nobody is really in charge. For starters, he tasked Singson as “water czar” to review the protocol on releasing water from dams.

Singson, former president of Maynilad Water Services Inc., said he believes he was appointed water czar because of his proposal that the government come up with a “convergence program” among water-related agencies.

Another noteworthy measure acted upon by P-Noy was his speedy approval of the request of Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda for the DPWH dredging assistance to clear the heavily silted Pampanga River Basin. The dredging would enable waters released from the dams to flow through all the way out to Manila Bay and not cause or add more to the flood problem.

Meanwhile, we should let the true experts on hydrology who understand dam operations, to speak on this vital problem in the Philippines, related to the raging debate whether or not water releases from dams in Luzon caused the flooding.

I’m reprinting discussion notes submitted to the Senate Climate Change Committee by Jerry Velasquez, currently the senior regional coordinator for Asia-Pacific of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR). Velasquez is the only Filipino holding a very high position in this Geneva-based agency of the UN family. An engineering graduate from Mapua Institute of Technology, Velasquez obtained his double master’s degree on hydrology from De La Salle University and at the Nagoya University in Japan.

On the question what would it take in terms of dam operations to prevent a flood, Velasquez propounded the following ideas:

• To prevent floods, it would require pre-emptive release of water before the typhoon fully arrives and a proper assessment of the full carrying capacity of the dams during stress. These are NOT covered in the dam operation protocols. In 2009, NAPOCOR preemptively released water from Angat dam from November and December after Ondoy for fear of being blamed again for flashfloods in Metro Manila and northern provinces of Luzon. This led to less water in the dam in 2010, and Public Works Secretary Singson blamed the NAPOCOR’s “excessive” release of water for the 2010 water shortage problem. After this, NAPOCOR has been careful with its preemptive water releases.

• However, if PAGASA with improved forecasting and if with its new Doppler Radars can preemptively inform NAPOCOR, which then triggers preemptive controlled water release, then floods can be reduced as water release during peak typhoons can be avoided.

• We should remember that NAPOCOR is an agency that produces energy. Its goal is to maximize energy generation from the dams. If the operation of the dams were given to MWSS then they will maximize water supply. If we want to minimize floods, then a risk minded agency need to take charge in times of typhoons.

• Unfortunately the Philippines does not have a national dam safety program. In other countries, the operations of large dams especially if there are people and property that are at risk downstream, are turned over to state agencies during times of crisis. A two-pronged focus could be done — firstly to ensure that people are saved and losses are at a minimum during floods, and secondly — to preemptively try and reduce the floods due to water release from the dam. A purely profit oriented agency would not be able to undertake both of the above goals easily.

• What would also be needed would be an assessment of the safety of these dams, and the structural capacity during stress, so that proper decisions can be made during times of crisis.

“One last thing, all the protocols are made to manage flood in the dam, but does not consider preventive flooding downstream. Protocols are blind to the existing conditions downstream and will release water to protect the dam no matter what,” Velasquez concluded.

Velasquez has been assisting Sen. Loren Legarda in the performance of her international duties as “UNISDR regional champion for disaster risk and climate change adaptation for Asia and the Pacific.” Before he flew yesterday to Pakistan which was also recently hit by deadly floods, I had the chance to talk with Velasquez on the new discussions about the latest water releases from dams that were being blamed for the unabated flooding in Central Luzon provinces.

He expressed his apprehensions where the current debate on dam protocols in the Philippines would go. It is important, he stressed, that the national government must come up with a “holistic” approach, or across the board solution that must be made in close consultation with all stakeholders from farmers to energy users down to the local government units in the areas along the path of water releases from these dams.

The decision on a new set of protocols would hopefully this time strike an acceptable balance between the need to protect the dam structure or to prevent flood downstream. But the process of consultations must start now before stronger typhoons come in the next few days. We need to be clear on this so that there is no finger pointing later.