THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources will soon come up with a comprehensive characterization and management plan of the country’s 18 major river basins.
Environment Secretary Ramon J.P. Paje said the study, which was commissioned by the department’s River Basin Control Office, aims to guide various stakeholders on how to best manage these economically important river systems.
The characterization of the rivers, Paje said, is important in coming up with an effective disaster-risk reduction and -management plan for communities along these major water bodies, as well.
“Protecting the source of water is very important. Which is why we decided to come up with comprehensive study and rehabilitation plan for these river systems. This will be completed by December,” he told the BusinessMirror.
Paje said, “protecting the source of water” is a major factor in the success of ongoing programs to rehabilitate the country’s rivers, noting that all efforts downstream, such as dredging silt, removing garbage and preventing dumping of household and industrial wastes will be useless if the watersheds are degraded. “The rivers are the bloodstream of society. We need to keep our bloodstream clean to maintain a healthy body,” he said.
Paje said focus is particularly given to 18 major river systems: Cagayan River, Mindanao River, Agusan River, Pampanga River, Agno River, Abra River, Pasig-Laguna River, Bicol River Abulug River, Saug-Libuganon, Ilog-Hilabangan, Panay River, Tagoloan River, Agus River, Davao River, Cagayan de Oro River, Jalaur River and Buayan-Malungon River.
“These river systems are major life-support system for communities with big concentration of people, food production areas, as well as commercial and industrial zones,” he said.