Mahiga creek along F. Cabahug street File Photo (CDN PHOTO/CHOY ROMANO)
To speed up the dredging of the mouth of the Mahiga River, Cebu City is offering to have the excavated silt delivered to Block 27 of the North Reclamation Area (NRA).
The plan is to have the silt dried there and used as filling materials.
Joey Daluz, who heads the Cebu City Rivers Management Council (CCRMC), said this was agreed upon in last Thursday’s meeting with a representative from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
“We invited them for conference meetings next week on Sept. 15, 16 and 17,” Daluz said.
He said the city government would help the national agency secure approval from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
DPWH Cebu City District Engr. Fernando Cruz earlier said a P20 million dredging project for the mouth of the Mahiga River was scheduled in the second quarter of the year but was delayed because the DENR hasn’t approved yet its application for an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) because of an unresolved matter about where to deposit the silt.
“I will work for the approval of the mayor on dumping the waste in Block 27 first so the ECC for the project will be approved and the project can continue,” Daluz said.
Daluz said Mahiga River is a priority in the flood control program of the city.
A check with DENR 7 showed that no ECC is needed for river rehabilitation.
“We only require an ECC if there’s commercial disposal. But in this case, if it’s for river rehabilitation, a Certificate of Non-Coverage (CNC) is needed,” said Eddie Llamedo, DENR 7 spokesman.
Flooding in Cebu City has worsened due to waterways getting narrower from encroaching structures, Daluz said.
Notices were sent out last Friday to seven commercial establishments, including a hospital, which owns structures encroaching on the 3-meter easement of the river.
Daluz said the city would first ask them to cooperate in rehabilitating the river before taking legal action.
Business representatives were invited to conferences on Sept. 15 to 17 along with the DPWH, to discuss ways to restore the public easement zone along waterways.
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