Business conglomerate San Miguel Corporation (SMC) has done its part in ensuring a “flood-free” Biñan City by dredging its most important waterway, the Biñan River. Local officials now ask the national government: why can’t it do its own part by undertaking a massive dredging of Laguna de Bay?
A huge improvement, but...
Officials of the local government of Biñan, Laguna believe the national government should do more to address the issue of flooding in its coastal barangays.
This, as business conglomerate San Miguel Corporation (SMC) announced the completion of its landmark program to dredge the Biñan River – a huge step forward in addressing the issue of perennial flooding along its path.
Tons of silt removed
In a recent press statement, SMC Chairman and CEO Ramon Ang said the conglomerate’s “Better Rivers PH” program has succeeded in removing a total of 87,899 tons of silt and solid waste from the Biñan River.
The massive cleanup program covered 3.2 kilometers of the Biñan River from its mouth at Barangay Dela Paz to the downtown area in Barangay Poblacion.
Barangay Dela Paz, along with nearby Barangay Malaban, had long suffered from the problem of flooding during the rainy season, as floodwaters take weeks or even months to recede after typhoons or days of continuous rain.
“Dati po matagal bago humupa ang baha. Nitong Pasko (December 2024), may malakas na ulan pero hindi na umakyat ang tubig dito. Yung ilang lugar na binaha, mabilis nang bumababa ang tubig,” Herminigildo Aguilar, a barangay kagawad from Poblacion, was quoted by SMC. “Maluwag na ang ilog, mas mabilis nang umaagos ang tubig.”
Garbage, too
SMC officials said the largest volume removed was at the mouth of the river in Laguna Lake, where the natural river channel was practically blocked going out to the lake.
Jeorge Total, SMC’s team leader for the Biñan river cleanup, said four teams equipped with backhoes and barges were deployed to do the job.
“Grabe ang basura nung dumating kami dito. Nagpulo-pulo na. Hindi kami makakain sa tabi kasi talagang mabaho. Ngayon wala ka nang maamoy,” Total said.
A challenge for the cleanup crews were narrow sections of the river in the city proper where barges carrying the backhoes could not maneuver, so cranes had to make a tight entry through the city to reach the riverbanks, the official added.
“I ask all our kababayans to please help take care of our rivers because they are critical to our health and the health of our environment, economy, and communities. The job of making our rivers better is not just the government’s or the private sector’s responsibility. What happens to our rivers affects us all, so we all have a role to play,” Ang added.
Second beneficiary
The Biñan River is the second river in Laguna province to undergo extensive dredging under the SMC’s “Better Rivers PH” program, after the San Isidro River in San Pedro City.
The cleanup of the San Isidro River began on August 2023 and was concluded a year later, after the extraction of 417,044 tons of silt and waste from a 5.3-kilometer stretch of the river.
As a result, communities near San Isidro River were spared from severe flooding episodes brought about by consecutive typhoons late last year, including Typhoon Kristine.
Ang added that the SMC’s “Better Rivers PH” program is now targeting two other major rivers in San Pedro City: the Landayan River and the Tunasan River, along the boundary between San Pedro and Muntinlupa cities.
Laguna de Bay should be next
While officials from the local government have recognized and expressed their gratitude to SMC for their efforts in cleaning up Biñan River, Mayor Arman Dimaguila once again stressed his belief that the only way to effectively resolve the problem of flooding in Barangays Malaban and Dela Paz is to dredge the Laguna de Bay itself.
“For the longest time, wala pa pong naging proyekto on the national level para i-dredge ang Laguna de Bay,” the mayor pointed out in a recent interview with media.
The one exception was an attempt made by the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo back in the 2000s, when it entered into a dredging contract with Belgian firm Baggerwerken Decloedt En Zoon (BDC) to dredge 94,900 hectares of Laguna de Bay.
The project, however, was scrapped by the succeeding administration of the late President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III due to allegations of corruption.
BDC sued the Aquino administration for breach of contract before the International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in 2011.
In February 2017, the ISCID ruled in favor of BDC and ordered the national government to pay P800 million in damages to the Belgian company.
“Alam po ninyo, naha-highlight lang po ang problema natin ng pagbaha sa dalawang panahon: tuwing tag-ulan at tuwing eleksyon,” the city mayor pointed out. “Ang paglilinis po sa Laguna de Bay ay hindi po kakayanin ng local government; dapat po ang national government ang manguna upang tuluyang ma-resolba ang problema ng pagbabaha hindi lamang sa ating lungsod kundi pati na rin sa mga lungsod na nakapaligid sa Laguna de Bay.”