MMDA resumes estero clearing drive

MANILA, Philippines - The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) on Friday resumed its annual drive to clear-up esteros or waterways as part of its anti-flood measures.

Dubbed "Estero Blitz," the MMDA marked the start of the drive with the clearing of the Viente Reales creek in Barangay Lingunan in Valenzuela City. The creek is one of 15 esteros eyed for clearing by the MMDA. The drive ends on June 6.

“We have been doing this every summer in preparation for the rainy season and flooding. But this time we’re focusing on small, inner waterways that have not been attended to in the past like this Viente Reales creek,” Tolentino said.

According Tolentino, the heavily-silted, water lily-clogged, 1.7-kilometer long Viente Reales creek overflows during the rainy season.

Some 200 personnel from the MMDA’s Flood Control and Sewerage Management Office (FCSMO) took part in the clearing. The wrokers were aided by backhoes, lift trucks, and cranes. The clearing will continue until today (Saturday) the MMDA said.

Prior to the clearing, Tolentino said members of the MMDA's Health, Public Safety and Environmental Protection Office (HPSEPO) were sent to the area to conduct health education and environmental conservation lectures and medical missions, supported by representatives from the Department of Health (DOH) and the City Health Office (CHO) of Valenzuela City.

"Aside from lectures, we have now partnered with the DOH and the local health offices to conduct medical missions in the barangays,” Tolentino said.

Defogging and misting operations were also done as part of the cleanup program to help eliminate mosquitoes.

"We are calling on the public to participate in cleaning up their surroundings. We can do this more effectively if everybody is helping,” Tolentino said.

Estero Blitz, now on its fourth year, aims 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.

For this season, MMDA targets to collect a total of 387,487.70 cubic meters of silt and garbage from the 15 esteros in the cities of Manila, Quezon City, Makati, Pasay, Caloocan, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Paranaque, Valenzuela, and Taguig.

Excluding Viente Reales creek, the other 14 targeted esteros are: Tanigue Creek (Caloocan); Letre Open Canal (Tonsuya, Malabon); Pinagsabugan Creek (Longos, Malabon); Tanque Creek (NIA Road, Quezon City); Mariblo Creek (Barangay Bungad, Quezon City); Concepcion Creek and Bayan Bayanan Outfall (Concepcion Marikina); Hagonoy Retarding Pond and Hagonoy Creek (Barangay Hagonoy, Taguig); Sapang Buwaya Creek (San Isidro, Paranaque); Pasong Diablo Creek (Alabang, Muntinlupa); Maricaban Creek (Pasay City); Estero Tripa de Gallina, (Buendia Avenue to Zobel Roxas, Pasay and Malate); and Estero De Pandacan (Pandacan, Manila).