Dagupan affected by one-meter sea rise – UP prof

By March 18, 2019Headlines, News

LINGAYEN—The seeming constant flooding in Dagupan City is now unavoidable because the sea level has already risen by one meter, seriously affecting the city and partly affecting Lingayen.  Blame it  on account of global warming.

This was the revelation of University of the Philippines professor, Dr. Ebinezer R. Florano, associate professor of Public Administration of UP-National College of Public Administration and Governance, who pointed to the melting of ice glaciers in the Arctic Region of the globe that caused the sea to expand due to global warming.

Dr. Florano spoke at  the 4th Lecture Series of the Pangasinan Center of Studies on the forum on Mainstreaming Integrated Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction in Local Development Planning at Sison Auditorium on March 14.

“Dagupan was already warned about the rise of water level and  I presume its officials and people already know what to do, but I doubt if they are making similar preparations in  Lingayen,” he said. .

The forum was attended by representatives from municipal and city disaster risk  reduction and managements offices and students.

He warned that the sea level may still rise about three meters, which again will bring more serious consequences to Dagupan City and Lingayen as the ice glaciers continue to melt.

 A six meter sea level rise, is still possible if all the ice glaciers in the Arctic region shall have all melted and gone, he added. When that time comes, “we shall all be drowning”.

Dr. Florano’s revelation confirmed previous assertion by Dagupan City Mayor Belen Fernandez that the recurrent flood in the city last year were caused by climate change not by back-filling of fishponds and properties.

He urged all towns and cities in Pangasinan to adopt their respective Comprehensive Land Use Plans (CLUPs) to help cushion the impact of rising water level in their areas.

The CLUP designates the best areas in each locality where to place settlement, agricultural  and commercial areas and open spaces that will guide future developers.

He added that climate change experts as well as disaster risk reduction managers can co-exist and work together but cannot be integrated because they have different specialties.

The reactors in the forum were Marilou Ortiz of DILG, OIC-Provincial and of Natural Resources Officer Raymundo Gayo, Dr. Cherrie Melanie Diego of Commission on Higher Education, Region 1; and Col. Rhodyn Luchinvar Oro, Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Officer of Pangasinan. (Leonardo Micua)

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments