The Metro Manila Development Authority has resumed its campaign cleaning up clogged creeks and open waterways to prevent severe floods in the metropolis in time of the rainy season.
Baltazar Melgar, head of the MMDA Flood and Sewerage Management Office, said a total of 2,989 cu. m. or 288 truckloads of refuse and silt have been scooped out of five major esteros and sewers in their latest clean up operation in Manila.
Those already de-clogged are North and South Antipolo Open Canal, Estero de Kabulusan, Estero de Magdalena, Estero de San Miguel, and Estero de Quiapo.
Armed with heavy equipment, such as crane, dump trucks and spider backhoe, the MMDA men started cleaning up creeks mostly in severely silted and clogged up waterways on March 1.
MMDA chairman Emerson Carlos said some of his men had to use small boats or bancas to fish out the floating debris and refuse from the waterways.
“With this regular cleanup, we expect that floods in low-lying areas of Metro Manila would quickly subside after heavy rainfall,” said Carlos, noting that agency personnel, along with barangay officials, should keep these waterways clear of any debris.
The campaign also aimed to maximize the “conveyance capacity” of open waterways in Metro Manila to enable it to accommodate larger volume of floodwaters during the rainy season, thus hastening the flood receding rate and minimizing flooding.
Carlos said the program is also part of the agency’s efforts towards urban renewal and disaster mitigation.
“We are calling on the public to participate in cleaning up their surroundings. We can do this more effectively if everybody is helping. We also encourage barangay officials to continue maintaining the cleanliness of their esteros, markets and surroundings,” he said.