Senator Cynthia Villar was “shocked,” Senator Risa Hontiveros was “very surprised,” and Senator Imee Marcos “nearly fainted” when they heard an official from the environment department say that the massive flooding caused by Typhoon Ulysses (Vamco) in Metro Manila could not have been prevented even if the Marikina Watershed had not been denuded.

The Senate committee on environment and natural resources led by Villar held a hearing on Thursday, December 10, about the environmental aspect of what caused the unprecedented floods in different parts of Luzon following successive typhoons Quinta (Molave), Rolly (Goni), and Ulysses.

“If all urban development and quarrying are stopped and the Marikina Watershed [is] fully planted with 10-year-old mature trees, it will require 9 times the area of Marikina Watershed to absorb all the water during Typhoon Ulysses,” Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Undersecretary for Field Operations Juan Miguel Cuna told the Senate panel.

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Incredulous, Villar asked Cuna to clarify what he meant. Cuna then referred the question to DENR Mines and Geosciences Bureau chief Wilfredo Moncano.

That’s right, Moncano said. Based on computations by the agency’s hydrologist, even if the entire Marikina Watershed had been pristine and fully forested, the 581 million cubic meters of rain from Typhoon Ulysses was too much to absorb, and would still have inundated parts of the metropolis, as it did in mid-November.

Villar: DENR ‘justifying’ destructive activities

Many parts of the Marikina Watershed are denuded, having lost their forest cover to decades of logging and other forms of abuse by people. Environmental experts and advocates have long warned that the degradation of the watershed causes it to lose its capability to absorb rainwater, and contributes to soil erosion. Because of this, sludgy rainwater flows down unimpeded to the floodplains below.

Villar scolded the DENR for its statement, saying that, in a way, the agency was defending the illegal quarrying, logging, and mining activities that have been destroying the Marikina Watershed and the rest of the Sierra Madre mountain range.

“It’s the same as saying that we should not protect the Marikina Watershed because it cannot stop flooding in Marikina. It’s an indirect way of justifying all those they are doing in the Marikina Watershed,” Villar said.

“You don’t make statements like that, because if our DENR [is] not bent on protecting our watersheds, who will be bent on protecting our watersheds? It’s irresponsibility on your part to say those things, my God!” she added.

“I was also very surprised by that observation,” said Hontiveros. “I cannot believe it also. It would seem to be an argument setting up to fail in protecting the watershed.”

“The logical conclusion of that statement of theirs would be, ‘Let’s just sacrifice the watershed in order to proceed with so-called development projects’ when, in fact, the protection of the watershed will protect our cities and urban areas, which will enable our development programs to succeed,” Hontiveros added.

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Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu tried to clarify his subordinates’ statements, saying that they just meant Ulysses was an extraordinarily rain-heavy typhoon, and the fact that it came on the heels of two successive strong typhoons exacerbated the flooding because the mountains were already saturated with rainwater.

Villar replied that what the DENR should have said was that other programs would have been necessary to add to the capability of the Marikina Watershed to prevent floods.

“Na-shock na naman ako sa inyong department eh, kasi parang sinasabi ‘nyo na pabayaan na lang kasi hindi kaya ‘yung kasing-strong ng Typhoon Ulysses. I cannot accept that,” Villar added.

(I was again shocked by your department, because it’s like you’re saying to just let it be because it cannot handle typhoons as strong as Ulysses.)

DENR giving up the fight?

Villar had told the DENR in previous meetings not to sound as if they’re on the side of those with interests in exploiting the environment. That sort of talk should be left to other agencies like the Department of Public Works and Highways, she said.

“It’s not your work. Your work is to protect the environment, not construction or protection of businesses,” she added.

Senator Imee Marcos chimed in, saying the DENR should enforce environmental laws more strictly, instead of giving up due to the immensity of the problem.

“Medyo hinimatay naman tayo na mismong ‘yung DENR, surrender na. Naku, General Cimatu, hindi naman nagsu-surrender ang sundalo (We nearly fainted – the DENR itself is surrendering. Oh my, General Cimatu, a soldier never surrenders),” Marcos teased the environment chief, a former military chief.

In past Senate inquiries, Villar criticized the DENR for acting rather like a purveyor of environment compliance certificates to authorize projects that are disruptive to the environment, such as the reclamation of Manila Bay.

Villar pointed out how keeping Manila Bay open is crucial in preventing floods in her native Las Piñas City. The DENR had been too eager at times to allow reclamation projects, she said, so that she has had to lobby against them before as a private businesswoman, and now as a lawmaker.

At the end of the hearing, Hontiveros posed a “philosophical question” to the DENR: “Does the DENR think that their primary mandate of protection and conservation is somehow sacrificed by other concerns such as trade and economic development?”

Cimatu had, by then, left the virtual hearing, so Villar told Hontiveros to just put her question in writing, to be sent to the DENR afterwards.

Agreeing with her fellow senator, Villar said the DENR should know its priorities – environmental protection and conservation, not anything else.

“Nalilimutan nila ‘yon eh (They tend to forget that), in an effort to justify what they have failed to do,” Villar added. – Rappler.com