Magnum Opus

26/09/2022

[STEM]

DAMN THE DAM
Save Sierra Madre, save our future

By Rendell Aaron Lateo

Following the consecutive devastating typhoons that ravaged almost the entirety of Luzon that left towns submerged in flood, and took the lives of more than 70 people, Filipinos were left to realize the importance of our natural safeguards against extreme typhoons.

Sierra Madre mountain range was dubbed as the ‘backbone’ of Luzon — it protects the island by partially weakening the strong onslaught of storms coming from the Pacific ocean. The 540 km long stretch of mountain, ranges from Cagayan Valley in the north, down to Quezon Province, and traverses 10 provinces in three regions. It has a forest cover of 1.4 million hectares, which represents 40 percent of the country’s existing forest cover.

Due to its rich resources, it has since been very attractive to the eyes of investors. It has been constantly threatened by human activities such as mining, land conversion for agriculture, timber poaching, and mega-dam projects. Numerous project proposals that would construct mega-dams were planned beginning from the Marcos years, one of which is the controversial Kaliwa Dam, which would allegedly solve the Greater Manila Area’s overdependence on Angat Dam.

How vulnerable is the Sierra Madre mountain range?

Corruption, poor implementation of environment and forest protection laws, and lack of alternative livelihood for poor people contribute to its continued degradation. The construction of dams, especially the infamous Kaliwa Dam Project or the New Centennial Water Source flagship project under the Build Build Build Program of the administration will destroy the habitat of threatened wildlife species, much of which are unique to be found in the country such as the Philippine Eagle, Philippine Brown Deer, Philippine Warty Pig, as well as the Hawksbill Turtle among others. It will also displace communities of the Dumagat-Remontado tribes that have been living in harmony with nature for ages on their ancestral domains.

The Sierra Madre contains the Philippines’ largest remaining old-growth forests and 20 protected areas. It boasts high endemism or the species of wildlife found to be unique in the area. Pushing through with the construction of ecologically destructive projects could inadvertently wreak more havoc and even outweigh the cost to have it built.

Do we need more dams?

Ninety-seven percent of water in Metro Manila is sourced from the 53-year-old Angat Dam, and the sporadic occurrence of water shortages during dry months is not new to us and nearby provinces. The government sees the construction of dams to be the most viable solution to the problem. But this construction is not guaranteed to solve the issue, as part of what causes the water shortages are the denuded watersheds of Sierra Madre, hence its protection and conservation shall be the foremost priority.

Just as history proves, no project will yield success if done at the expense of people and the environment. There has been a decreasing trend in the construction of dams around the world due to widespread public clamor and the major economic and environmental consequences associated with it. In a report by the World Commission on Dams, they found that “dams have made an important and significant contribution to human development, and benefits derived from them have been considerable... in too many cases an unacceptable and often unnecessary price has been paid to secure those benefits, especially in social and environmental terms, by people displaced, by communities downstream, by taxpayers and by the natural environment."

If it truly is about the welfare of the population and solving the water crisis, forest protection and conservation is the way to go to rehabilitate the denuded watersheds, not only this would be cost-effective but would also be practical to protect the remaining wildlife, its habitat, and the ancestral domains of the indigenous peoples residing in the area. Dams cause relocations without adequate compensations for the communities affected, blockage in the natural flow of debris, destruction of habitats, and in worst cases, wildlife extinction.

Yes to alternatives, no to Kaliwa Dam!

Should the construction of the dam ensue, the Filipino people would have to bear the brunt of the socio-environmental costs that come with the project. There are alternatives yet to be tapped.

One of which is the restoration of degrading parts of the Ipo, Angat, and La Mesa watershed among others, as well as repairing water distribution facilities to minimize water leakage and water recycling. Aside from dams, there are also other ways to avoid a water crisis. There is an existing law — the Republic Act 6716, also known as the Rainwater Collector and Springs Development Act of 1989 that mandates every local government to construct and make use of a rainwater collection system to minimize flooding and ensure continuous water supply during the dry season.

The saving of the so-called “backbone of Luzon” through online petitions gained huge public support following the consecutive strong typhoons that struck the country this year. As a country that is ravaged by an average of 20 typhoons each year, we must do whatever we can to save us from the impending loss of lives due to natural catastrophes.

As Gina Lopez said in a public display of frustration on her rejection as the DENR Secretary last 2017, “If you kill the environment, you kill everything.”

With the worsening climate crisis, more and more calamities would be exacerbated by negligence towards ecological justice. Protecting Luzon’s strongest defense against typhoons is everyone’s duty, and greedy capitalists and politicians are more so, not excused.

Art by Elizabeth Jose
Pubmat by John Adrian Cruz