Secretary Roy A. Cimatu of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Thursday announced that the massive rehabilitation of Cagayan River – the country’s largest river – will begin on February 2, coincides with World Wetlands Day, beginning with the removal of sandbars to clear the constricted section of the river and massive planting of bamboos along its banks.
Cimatu, also concurrent chairman of the Task Force Build Back Better, said in a news statement that the rehabilitation of the Cagayan River is the culmination of weeks of meticulous planning and detailed coordination to ensure that each of the dredging equipment is safely transported to the sandbar sites, and that bamboos are grown at critical portions of the riverbank needing immediate measures to address stream bank erosion and instability.
On top of the six amphibious dredgers of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), a total of 40 dredging equipment are expected to be deployed by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), which consists of dump trucks, bulldozers, tractors, and scoop loaders.
The removal of the sandbars aims to clear the constricted section of Cagayan River, known as the Magapit Narrows.
He said almost a kilometer length of the riverbank in Barangay Bangag in Lallo will be planted with 925 bamboo propagules during the launch.
The sandbar clearing and growing of bamboos will go side by side to protect nearby agricultural lands and crops from damage during typhoons.
The first phase of the dredging activities entails the removal of three priority sandbars along the Magapit Narrows covering a total of 235 hectares with a volume of seven million cubic meters.
A total of 19 sandbars have been identified by the DPWH but immediate dredging was recommended for the three sandbars, which significantly hinder the flow of flood water to the Aparri Delta draining to the Babuyan Channel.
The three sandbars have a total estimated volume of seven million cubic meters, covering 235 hectares.
These are located at Barangay Bangag in Lal-lo town covering 11.4 hectares with 334,305 cubic meters of sand; Casicallan Norte, Gattaran that covers 89 hectares with 2.7 million cubic meters of sand; and Dummun, Gattaran covering 174.70 hectares with 4.04 million cubic meters of sand.
The dredging operation will include 48 laborers and operators trained by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).
Meanwhile, the planting operation will require some 100 local residents who are beneficiaries of Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/ Displaced Workers program of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to work on the project.
“This is whole-of-government at its best, with the support from almost all national agencies and the Cagayan provincial government,” Cimatu said.
TFBBB co-chairman DPWH Secretary Mark Villar, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, and outgoing AFP Chief of Staff General Gilbert Gapay are expected to accompany Cimatu during the launch of the first phase of dredging activities on February 2.
Cagayan Gov. Manuel Mamba, Isabela Gov. Rodolfo Albano, Quirino Gov. Dakila Carlo Cua, Cagayan local chief executives Matthew Nolasco of Gattaran and Oliver Pascual of Lallo, DENR-Cagayan Valley Executive Director Gwendolyn Bambalan, and DPWH-Cagayan Valley Director Loreta Malaluan have also collectively worked on the programs.