ILOILO CITY – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources has blamed the recent flooding in Boracay Island on what many have known all along.

DENR regional executive director Lormelyn Claudio said a team dispatched to investigate the extent and cause of the flooding found deficiencies in the drainage and sewerage plans and designs.

They found drainage and sewage pipes that were not connected to the main system on the island and instead were channeled to outflows.

But Claudio pointed out that the main cause of the flooding is the covering up of water valleys and wetlands by uncontrolled construction.

Wetlands like marshes and swamps which absorb rain water were reclaimed and buildings where put up over them, Claudio said.

The site which includes the D' Mall complex, for instance, was formerly a natural lagoon. This causes rainwater to be stagnant because of a lack of natural outflow.

Claudio said the constructions have become so unregulated that even easements were covered with buildings.

“The development has mushroomed to a point that facilities are already overwhelmed,” Claudio said in a telephone interview.

The island now hosts around 1,000 business establishments, nearly half are resorts and hotels which catering to around 600,000 tourists.

The $60-million Shangri-La Resort and Spa is set to open this year or next year at Yapac village. It is considered the biggest hotel to open on the island with at least 170 rooms and 50 villas and equipped with world-class amenities and function rooms for conventions and other events.

Claudio said the problems are complex and there is a need for all concerned agencies and sectors to work together and make sacrifices if necessary.

“There will be no overnight solution,” she said.

Edwin Trompeta of the Department of Tourism said Boracay residents started to experienced flooding in the late 1990s. “But this was not serious as like now.” he said. “This shows how nature will catch up with us if it is abused.”

Mayor Ciceron Cawaling of Malay town, where Boracay is located, blamed the flooding on the continuous rains

“It will be flooded when there is heavy rain,” he said in a telephone interview. “As long as it continues to rain and the drainage system is not completed, the flooding will continue,” he said.

He said the problem will be addressed when a drainage project of the Philippine Tourism Authority is completed.

The PTA, tasked to develop, supervise and operate tourism projects and areas, is undertaking the drainage system project designed to address the problem.

But the P110-million project has been delayed over problems of right of way and sites for drainage pipes and pumping stations.

Some lot owners have refused to allow pipes to pass through their properties or sell portions of their land to the PTA for the pumping stations.

The price of lots on the island has skyrocketed because of the tourism boom. The prized beach front lots can cost from P30,000 to P50,000 per square meter if there are lots for sale.

The PTA has filed expropriation cases for an area reaching 500 square meters needed for the drainage project.

Two days of heavy rains flooded major areas of the island starting on December 28 and lasting for several days.

The flooding severely affected areas along Boat Station 2, at the middle of the 1,000-hectare island, including the Boracay Municipal Hospital and the high-end D' Mall commercial complex.*NPB

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