This is the conclusion of a two-part special report on the flooding crisis in Cebu City. To read the first part, click here.
CEBU CITY, Philippines — There have been various solutions proposed and implemented in addressing the flooding woes in Cebu City — and mainly they come in the form of hard infrastructure such as drainage systems, and flood control structures.
The Cebu City government, currently under the administration of Acting Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia, suggested plans to revive and update the long-overdue Metro Cebu Master Drainage Plan that would hopefully address flooding problems not only in Cebu City but also in neighboring cities and towns within metropolitan Cebu.
This ambitious project also included building gabion dams or mini dams in upland areas to control water flow.
These structures aim to lower flooding risk by capturing excess rainwater and releasing it slowly, preventing it from overwhelming the current drainage systems.
However, as of this year, only 20 percent of the plan has been executed over the past two decades.
In addition, the Unified Project Management Office-Flood Control Management Cluster (UPMO-FCMC) revealed that approximately P8.2 billion would be needed to complete it, which would cover major rivers in Metro Cebu.
READ MORE: Is Cebu City ready for massive flooding?
For his part, Garcia emphasized the need to revise the design of the Master Drainage Plan, even admitting that the amount of rainfall in the past years had increased.
With an outdated design, this ambitious project may only go to waste.
“We are already doing a lot of things…It’s not an overnight solution. The volume of rain has tripled unya atong (and our) existing drainage system 90s pa na, dugay na kaayo (that is still in the 90s, that is really a long time ago),” he said in earlier reports.
Aside from reviving the Metro Cebu Master Drainage Plan, the city government is looking to spend billions in public funds for more flood-control infrastructure, including a P149-million dam and a proposal to earmark P2 billion for 2025.*
CDN Digital has also compiled a list of flood-mitigation projects that the national government, through the Department of Public Works and Highway (DPWH), had implemented for Cebu City from 2016 to 2024.
We found out that they spent over P5 billion over the last decade.
A lot of these involved creating and improving drainage, rehabilitation and maintenance of existing flood-control structures.
And yet, residents like Evalou Marbie de la Cruz and Desiree Buncad agreed that the flooding situation in the city has worsened over the years.
“Nagkaworsen, grabe. Singapore-be-like kay Merlion nibugwak na og tubig,” De la Cruz said in jest, referring to the city government’s previous campaign name called ‘Singapore-like Cebu City’ that aims to adapt the city-state’s best practices.
(It has worsened, really worse. Singapore-be-like because the Merlion has already gushed out water.)
Even environmental and hydrology experts here shared the same sentiments that the flooding crisis in Cebu City had gotten worse.
Furthermore, they believed that while hard infrastructures could help alleviate the issue, the government should also consider other solutions that might be cheaper and more effective in the long run.
In fact, a study from financial institution Asian Development Bank (ADB) stated that countries vulnerable to climate change, like the Philippines, should not only rely on traditional flood-control structures like dikes, drainage pipes, and storage tanks.
But they should also prioritize nature-based solutions (NbS), especially with the threats of climate change.
“Adapting to the risks of a changing climate is imperative for national and local governments, and it requires both structural measures (such as infrastructure investments) and nonstructural measures (such as disaster preparedness and early warning systems for floods and other potential disasters),” portions of the report read.
Nature-Based Solutions
The impact of climate change has led multiple countries worldwide to adapt NbS in addressing natural disasters like floods.
NbS is the term used to describe the processes of ‘managing climate change-related hazards and disaster risks’ derived from nature, and have little to no impact on the environment.
They are often considered as more ‘effective and efficient’ than their traditional counterparts like structural solutions [2].
Aside from mitigating the impact of climate change, they also provide other benefits to the community, the ADB added. These included improvement of air and water quality, more cooling microclimates, and recreational green spaces for people.
“We urge leaders to raise discussions about climate change and talk more about it… And we’re open to help them,” said lawyer Rose-Liza Eisma-Osorio, legal and policy director of the environmental group Oceana Philippines.
Managing Water Resources
“Nagka worsen, grabe. Singapore-be-like kay Merlion ni bugwak na og tubig,” said Marbie Evalou de la Cruz
We have talked with experts from Save Cebu Movement and the University of San Carlos – Water Resources Center Foundation Inc. (WRCFI) and both recommended for leaders to also implement NbS, backed by scientific findings and data.
One of the most effective means to solve the flooding crisis in Cebu City – and Metro Cebu for that matter – is to rethink their entire strategy in flood mitigation by managing water resources wisely, according to Engr. Nenita Jumao-as of USC-WRCFI.
Rains are important in tropical countries like the Philippines since they serve as the primary source of water. They provide the water we source from rivers, watersheds, lakes and other bodies of water.
CDN File Photo
Water coming from rains either falls on existing bodies of water like rivers and watersheds or flows overland. The latter usually results in flooding, which is a natural phenomenon, said Jumao-as.
This is why combating floods should not be the case if Cebu City not only wants to address severe flooding.
“Flood is surface water occurrence. It’s also sad nganong (why) we have to fight floods (referring to Cebu City’s Gubat sa Baha flood-prevention campaign)…It is there for a purpose, we should befriend it,” she added, stressing that ‘combatting flood’ should not be the case.
So, the USC-WRCFI official urged urban planners as well as leaders in government to ensure that these flood water would be captured so they could be properly used and even stored, especially during drought.
Otherwise, the consequences would be disastrous.
“That baha (flood), we should capture upstream and di musagol (it will not mix) downstream… where the drainage system is already clogged. (If it does), samot na siya og problema (then it will worsen the problem). Catch it where it’s still upstream,” said Jumao-as.
There are multiple ways to manage floodwater, which will range from constructing gabion dams to reforesting the mountains so the water will be absorbed and stored as groundwater below.
This groundwater, in turn, can serve as additional sources of potable water in the future, especially in times of drought, Jumao-as added.
“We should view and treat water like money or revenue, where we manage and spend it wisely, and then store it in the bank,” she said.
Cebu City can also transform itself into a sponge city, the name used to describe highly urbanized cities that have the ability to soak up and store water from rains before releasing them slowly.
Coastal Greenbelt, Reforestation, Green Spaces
Another science-based approach Cebu City may consider – not only in tackling floods but also mitigating the impact of climate change – is the establishment of a coastal greenbelt.
The coastal greenbelt is the initiative of planting mangroves along coastlines to protect them from storm surges and tsunamis. They are also effective in mitigating the effects of floods as well as the impact of extreme weather events brought by climate change, Osorio said.
Osorio is also a member of non-profit organization Save Cebu Movement that aims to promote a livable and sustainable Cebu.
Oceana had been pushing for local governments around the country to establish coastal greenbelts, adding that they are cost-effective measures in protecting vulnerable coastal communities here.
In addition, Osorio emphasized for local government units to also prioritize reforestation and putting up more green spaces like parks.
The environmental lawyer pointed out how trees on the hinterlands could help absorb run-off rainwater, and prevent it from flowing downstream – the same suggestion Jumao-as raised.
Based on data from Global Forest Watch (GFW), Cebu City has lost over 600 kilo-hectares of forest cover in the past 20 years. In fact, it is one of the areas in the island province that has the highest forest cover loss.
GFW is an online open-access platform that offers real-time forestry information and other data about forests around the world.
The same data from also showed that the areas in Cebu that suffered the most tree cover loss in the past two decades belonged to the Central Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL) – including Cebu City.
Spanning an estimated 30,000 hectares, the protected area, situated in the middle of the island province, is home to crucial forestlands and watersheds.
It can be recalled that earlier this year, the City Planning and Development Office (CPDO) of Cebu City pushed to ban development and building of structures in the upland areas, particularly those near and inside the CCPL in the hopes of avoiding further deforestation in Cebu.
They made their calls when the city experienced one of the worst El Niño phenomena last summer that affected thousands of farmers, particularly in the upland barangays and resulted in massive water shortage.
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“We should be putting in more efforts in reforestation, (because) when we look at the lowland, heavily built up na ang Cebu City,” Osorio explained.
She also reminded local leaders that the Local Government Code mandated them to incorporate environmental aspects when it would come to urban planning.
“It’s so sad wala ta ka (we did not) look into the speed of urbanization in the cities and in Metro Cebu, it has not really kept paced with our obligations and responsibilities to ensure green parks,” Osorio added.
Community Effort
“We should view and treat water like money or revenue, where we manage and spend it wisely, and then store it in the bank,” said Engr. Nenita Jumao-as, board member of USC-WCRFI.
While both have agreed that the flooding problem in Cebu City has worsened over the years, both Jumao-as and Osorio have expressed optimism that there is still hope for the Queen City of the South to finally solve it – or at the very least, minimize its disruption.
For her part, Jumao-as hoped leaders would be able to invest in long-term and holistic solutions instead of ‘band-aid’ ones, which she likened to snacks.
“We’re so used to being fed with snacks but these snacks, dili ta mabusog ani (We would not be fully satisfied with this). What we need is the full meal,” she added.
Osorio, on the other hand, said the local governments here had the resources in addressing not only severe flooding but also its root causes and the impact of climate change.
“I don’t believe limited atong resources (our resources are limited). We can hold fiesta and cultural events, (and) even spend millions of pesos for them. Why can’t they spend for our environment’s sake?” she said.
Meanwhile, Jumao-as, Osorio – and even De la Crus and Buncad – stressed the need for community cooperation.
Even a simple and small act of properly disposing trash, as well as segregating them, can significantly help address the flooding woes in the city – if everyone in the community does so.
“The community and the local government and other concerning agencies should talk and discuss the updated and concrete plans of how to eradicate, if not lessen the issue of flooding in the city,” said Buncad. / with reports from Emmariel Ares, Pia Piquero, Niña Mae Oliverio
* CDN Digital has reached out to the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) for an in-depth interview for further insights and comments but to no avail due to conflicts in schedule and time restraints.
Sources:
[1] Climate Change Is Thrusting the World Towards a Wetter Future, Not a Dry One: Study | Weather.com