PHP 102 million proposed for Iloilo City flood master plan

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

ILOILO CITY – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has proposed PHP 102 million for an Iloilo City flood control master plan under its 2027 budget.

The proposed allocation is included in the 2027 National Expenditure Program (NEP) under support to operations for the maintenance, repair, rehabilitation, and improvement of infrastructure facilities for flood control and drainage systems, structures, and related facilities.

The funding is identified for flood control projects for pre-investment studies, including master plans and feasibility studies.

However, the NEP does not specify whether the proposed PHP 102 million allocation will be lodged under the DPWH-Western Visayas regional office or the Iloilo City District Engineering Office, if approved.

The proposed funding comes as Iloilo City continues to work on a comprehensive drainage and flood management plan.

The Iloilo City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Plan 2022-2025 noted that the city government must continue operating and maintaining existing flood defenses, including the Japanese-assisted Iloilo Flood Control Project.

The plan also identified the development and finalization of a comprehensive drainage master plan as a top priority to address the city’s fragmented and poorly designed drainage network.

It described the absence of a comprehensive drainage master plan as a critical systemic vulnerability that compounds the city’s natural exposure to flooding.

“Other factors that contribute to the vulnerability of the city to flooding [include] the poor drainage system given the absence of a comprehensive drainage plan,” the plan said.

It further noted that the poor drainage system has coincided with rapid and fragmented urban development, including the obstruction of natural waterways and the conversion of permeable agricultural land into roads and subdivisions.

Runoff can rapidly accumulate in low-lying areas during heavy monsoon rains, contributing to flooding in populated communities.

Among the waterways identified in the plan is Dungon Creek, whose overflow can affect highly populated areas such as Calubihan.

The framework said PHP 8 million from the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund for 2025 was allocated to develop the comprehensive drainage master plan.

The City Planning and Development Office was identified as the lead office responsible for directing and finalizing the plan in coordination with the City Engineer’s Office and the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office.

The City Engineer’s Office is particularly responsible for the physical rehabilitation of waterways and related infrastructure.

City Engineer Mavi Gustilo said earlier this month that the city’s comprehensive drainage plan remains at the feasibility study stage.

Other flood mitigation measures

The disaster risk reduction plan also identified several measures to further reduce the city’s flood vulnerability.

These include the installation of additional flood pumping stations in critical low-lying areas such as Muelle Loney and General Luna Street.

The city also identified the need to undertake at least one major waterway rehabilitation project every year, along with continuous and targeted declogging of heavily obstructed waterways such as Dungon Creek and the Iloilo River.

The plan further called for the construction of rainwater harvesting and stormwater catchment systems in at least 30% of the city’s barangays to reduce surface runoff during heavy rainfall.

It also recommended stricter enforcement of building regulations to prevent unplanned development, particularly along highly exposed riverbanks and coastlines.

The city’s zoning and shelter plans were likewise recommended for revision using vulnerability and risk assessment data.

The recommended measures include land banking, vertical development policies, and the systematic relocation of vulnerable families from areas with high flood susceptibility.

41 barangays highly susceptible to flooding

Iloilo City’s vulnerability to flooding is also linked to its geography.

The disaster risk reduction plan noted that the city sits on a flat alluvial fan, with about 90% of its land area lying only 2.64 meters above sea level.

Its nearly level terrain also allows seawater to move inland during high tides, which worsens flooding.

A 2016 Vulnerability and Risk Assessment by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau found that 41 barangays in Iloilo City had high to very high susceptibility to flooding as of that year.

That figure covers close to a fourth of the city’s 180 barangays.

The assessment identified San Isidro in Jaro as having the highest number of people exposed to flooding.

Other highly exposed, low-lying communities located along or near rivers and creeks include Tabuc Suba and Cubay, also in Jaro.

Bolilao in Mandurriao and So-oc in Arevalo were also identified among the city’s five most populated flood-exposed areas.

The city’s worst recorded flooding came in June 2008, when Typhoon Frank, internationally named Fengshen, submerged large sections of Iloilo City and killed hundreds across Panay.

The strategic plan said Iloilo City’s flood vulnerability is not solely driven by its natural geography but by the interaction of several factors, including infrastructure deficiencies and rapid urban development.

“Poor garbage disposal of the communities [and] the permitted development that affected the natural waterways and turned farmlands into roads and subdivisions [also contribute to flooding],” it added.