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A drainage plan was presented yesterday by realty developer Aboitiz Land and its contractor after heavy rain and a collapsed gabion wall caused flooding in part of barangay Lagtang, Talisay City in August.
The plan addresses water runoff and silting while work continues on the Kishanta Residential Subdivsion Area Expansion in barangays Lagtang and Cadulawan.
The plan was presented to the Talisay City Planning Office, media and residents of both barangays.
The developer built ripraps, siltation ponds, four-meter-wide gabion walls and stone masonry walls to cope with heavy rains and silt, said Rolando Oconor of BSP Construction.
?We are confident we can control the silt in the area and that the water will flow to Mananga River,? he added.
He said they expect less water runoff after the road network for the subdivision is completed. Surface soil is being washed out as earthmoving and construction continues until January or February 2010.
?We cannot control the silt 100 percent, but we can manage it. The water in the holding pond or retention pond (in order to prevent overflows) will be pumped out,? he said.
Lagtang barangay captain Sammy Cabuenas said he was satisfied with the mitigating measures.
?The cease-and-desist order of the city government was lifted for Aboitiz, but not the other companies,? he said, referring to other developers in the area. He said the project should be monitored by barangays and the local government.
Aboitiz Land was issued a Certificate of Environmental Compliance Commitment last July 31, 2008 for the subdivision expansion. The developer was advised to set up a drainage facility to minimize flooding within and next to the project area, and to submit its plans to the Talisay City Engineer's office.
About 200 families were affected by floods when heavy rains fell for four hours in August 18.
?A gabion collapsed in August and we were able to present a drainage plan to the city government on the first week of September,? Lorelei Ylaya, Aboitiz Land marketing manager, told Cebu Daily News.
The Talisay city government suspended development activities after the flood but Aboitiz Land was not hampered, she said.
?With Aboitiz Land, they submitted their drainage plan to the City Planning office and it was well discussed and well studied,? said Talisay City Councilor Rodolfo Cabigas, who explained that the suspension order issued by the city government after the August floods has been lifted.
?We have two tapping points for water in drainage from the expansion project and from the access road. The water will go to the DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways) drainage system,? said Perla Bataluna, construction management team manager.
She said they were concerned about siltation in Mananga River, which is the end point of water runoff and drains into the sea.
Water pollution measures are also in place, according to Oconer.
?We have a sewage septic tank while the effluent from the treatment facility will be tested regularly by the DENR (Department of Environment and Natural Resources),? he said.
He assured that ?clean? water will be released into Mananga River after a filtering process.
The barangay captain of Lagtang, meanwhile, said other developers in the area have contributed to the August flooding. He said Sta. Lucia Realty failed to repair a concrete road, Ilang-ilang street, that connects to the national highway.
?It is difficult for the people because the road is muddy during rainy days,? he said.
