Implement 1989 rainwater-collection law Tony Oposa Jr. Philippine Daily Inquirer
October 31, 2009
MANILA, Philippines—Flooding is excess water that does not have a receptacle. If so, find a receptacle.
It is a simple matter of allocating small (from 100-200 square meters to 1,000 sqm) parcels of land in every barangay (village). Then dig a deep hole to catch the excess water.
The benefits from the receptacle are as follows:
• Prevents or at least significantly minimizes flooding.
• Creates a pond for storing fish and thus becoming a source of food, especially for the poor. (This prevents the pond from being stagnant and turning into a breeding ground for mosquitoes.)
• Establishes a mini park.
• Provides an area on the banks for vegetation (especially vegetables and fruits).
• Improves the micro-climatic conditions by cooling the place.
• Recharges the badly depleted ground water.
• Stores water in preparation for drought. With climate change kicking us in the teeth, droughts are coming and will be more severe, believe me.
And oh, by the way, this is not wishful thinking on the part of an environmental advocate. It is actually contained in a law that not even those who are tasked with implementing it know about—Republic Act No. 6716 (1989). It states that:
“The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) shall, within thirty (30) days after the approval of this Act, undertake construction of ... rainwater collectors in all barangays in the Philippines in such number as may be needed and feasible, taking into consideration the population, hydrologic conditions …” (SEC. 2, March 1989).
This was reiterated by Executive Order No. 774, which President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo issued in December 2008. How many has the DPWH done? About seven or so, and only very recently. How many barangays are there? More than 42,000. Very good.
The first objection one would immediately hear is land is expensive. Well, how much is the one-time cost of land compared with the benefits that flow from it and the recurring cost of floods? In that context, the cost of the land is literally nothing. Besides, one should not look at it as an item of cost, rather as a low-cost infrastructure investment.
But then, the government, particularly the DPWH, is not reputed to like low-cost but effective alternatives. Its attitude seems to be that the bigger the cost, the better and the faster it will be done.
I call on interested lawyers to join me in a proactive legal action to compel the implementation of a law that has languished in the sickbed of noncompliance ... for 20 years! I also call on Congress to inquire why this far-sighted law passed more than two decades ago has not been implemented.
The time for talk is over. It is time for action, and in this case, for legal action!
(Tony Oposa Jr., an environmental lawyer, is a 2009 Ramon Magsaysay awardee. He is the president of the Law of Nature Foundation.)
