DENR Wants P1.6B For Manila Bay Rehabilitation
DENR WANTS P1.6B – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) sought out a budget of P1.6 billion for 2022.
According to environment chief Roy Cimatu, the budget aims to allocate funds for the “white sand project“, drainage cleaning, and relocation programs. Meanwhile, the total budget proposed for the department was P25.295 billion.
Additionally, during the House Committee hearing on Appropriations, Cimatu said the budget also includes construction projects around Manila Bay. Moreover, an emphasis to improve the water quality was also pushed.
However, the “Dolomite” project in Manila bay has faced harsh criticism, especially amid the pandemic. Along with this, President Rodrigo Duterte admitted that continued replenishment was needed to sustain the appearance of the “dolomite beach”.
Based on an article from CNN, the Bay’s rehab program consists of 10 priority projects. These include the following:
- Clean Air (₱143.01 million)
- Clean Water (₱315.49 million)
- Solid Waste Management (₱1.073 billion)
- Enhanced National Greening Program (₱3.689 billion)
- Intensified Forest Protection and Anti-Illegal Logging (₱696.41 million)
- Enhanced Biodiversity Conservation (₱1.016 billion)
- Scaling up of Coastal and Marine Ecosystems Management (₱271.801 million)
- Geohazards, Groundwater Assessment and Responsible Mining (₱407.65 million)
- Improved Land Administration and Management (₱415.345 million).
But, despite the large budget request for the rehabilitation of Manila Bay, Undersecretary Jonas Leones said DENR projected a total of P43 billion is required to fully rehabilitated the area. Moreover, he cited that all relevant agencies must also be involved.
“Hindi po natin matatapos ngayon ang rehabilitation (We cannot finish rehabilitation now) but this will continue until the next years to come, beyond this administration.”, he stated.
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