River control secures communities and agriculture in Cadiz City, Negros Occ

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Residents of Barangay Jerusalem along Paniqui-on River in Cadiz City, Negros Occidental will no longer have sleepless nights whenever heavy rains occur with the river control structures delivered by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

DPWH 6 Regional Director (RD) Nerie D. Bueno said the structure will help mitigate erosion of river banks that may be caused by rushing water when heavy rains occur, benefiting farms and other agricultural lands nearby.

“With this flood control structure, rushing water may not easily affect river banks, hence, rice lands, sugarcane plantations and other agricultural areas will not be damaged, thereby increasing productivity for sustainable supply,” Regional Director Nerie D. Bueno said.

“Local folks, especially in the agricultural sector, will be at ease knowing that their crops and other agricultural products will be safeguarded, hence, harvesting will be on time,” RD Bueno added.

“Significantly, lives and properties of the people, as well as the cattle and poultry industry in the community will be secured against possible flooding during the rainy season or when typhoons occur,” RD Bueno stressed.

Undertaken by DPWH, Negros Occidental 1^st District Engineering Office, the ₱40-million flood control project involves the construction of a 1.04-lane kilometer long, 3.5-meter high stone masonry. It also includes embankments and weep holes that will allow rainwater to go downstream rather than staying stagnant on the surface along the river banks.

“Paniqui-on River is a tributary of the much bigger and longer Lumanoy River where flooding is a common occurrence during rainy days or when typhoons occur. Hence building protection will help prevent untoward along Paniqui-on River,” OIC-District Engineer Dene B. Baldonado, Jr. said.

“With this project, agricultural communities and residents near the river will be protected against soil erosion and flooding, thus, they will feel secure even when calamities happen,” OIC-DE Baldonado added. (DPWH-6)