Photo Release

Protection of Watershed Pushed: Sen. Cynthia A. Villar pushes for the protection of watersheds in a bid to prevent massive flooding just like what happened in Cagayan Valley and Marikina Valley as an aftermath of Typhoon Ulysses. During the hearing of the Committee on Public Works, November 25, 2020, Villar noted that watersheds are protected under Republic Act No. 11038 or the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System Act (E-NIPAS), which she principally sponsored and authored. “…They said that maybe, the cause of the Marikina flooding is not Angat. It’s the Marikina watershed. According to the Department of Public Works and Highways, a dam should be built in Marikina. We have protected areas in Marikina and Rizal, it’s the Marikina Watershed Protected Area. Just like in Cagayan, we have the Northern Sierra Madre Protected Area. Maybe we should look into that. Maybe there are problems with the watersheds there that caused massive flooding in these areas,” Villar said. (Screen grab/ Senate PRIB)