Baraan: Denudation, not quarrying cause of flooding
BUGALLON MAYOR’S “FAULTY ANALYSIS”
LINGAYEN—Provincial Administrator Raffy Baraan dispelled allegations that illegal quarrying was the cause of the flashfloods that happened in Bugallon last weekend following heavy rains brought about by Typhoon Gener.
Baraan said that the report as alleged by Bugallon Mayor Rodrigo Orduna is a “faulty analysis” of the situation and misrepresentation of facts, stressing that the flashfloods that happened in the town were due to the mountains that have been denuded a long time ago.
“Walang logic yung sinasabi nila and it is a misrepresentation of facts,” Baraan said in a radio interview on August 3.
Baraan said there is no illegal quarrying in Bugallon and in other towns even as he said that all those involved in quarrying activities have been issued permits through the Provincial Mining and Regulatory Board headed by the regional director of the Mines and Sciences Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
Baraan attributed the flashfloods to the deforestation activities that have been going on during over the past years noting that “the real culprit that caused the flashfloods is the deforestation activities that led to the denudation of the forest.”
He lamented that despite efforts to reforest the area, forest fires keep the mountain sides denuded.
Gov. Amado T. Espino, Jr. has told a coordinating conference between the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council and the Philippine National Police that the flashflood was due to the deforested mountains because it could no longer hold water.
Baraan pointed out that because of the denudation, the rainwater in the mountains flows down quickly causing the flashfloods.
He noted that quarrying is even an advantage because its purpose is to remove silt from the river and allows the free flow of water along the river and prevent the river from becoming shallow.
“Like dredging operations, quarrying removes silt and sediments that settle on the river bed that practically allow free flow of water along the river, so it is a good flood control activity,” Baraan said.
Baraan also clarified that the province had to issue the cease and desist order for the quarrying activities because there is a limit to quarrying operations.
“Hindi puwedeng dire-diretso ang quarrying operation dahil may saturation point yan,” he said.
The officer in-charge of the Environment and Natural Resources Office of the Provincial Government, Amado Aquino, said the CDO was issued on July 23. (PIO/AngelineD. Villanueva)
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