by Juan Escandor Jr.
Philippine Daily Inquirer, November 17, 2009
PILI, CAMARINES SUR—Governor Luis Raymund “LRay” Villafuerte Jr. and the provincial board have criticized the proposed P700-million Libmanan-Cabusao Dam (LCD) in the first district of the province.
Villafuerte said the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) and the Bicol River Basin Water Management Project (BRBWMP), which would implement the dam project, could not give a written assurance that it would not cause massive flooding and endanger the lives and livelihood of people in the towns of Sipocot, Lupi and Libmanan.
“I have to oppose it now before it’s too late. We only need millions of pesos, not billions, for a project at the expense of the people,” he said on Monday.
He said the dam’s vicinity had enough water source for communal irrigation.
The proposed dam and its complementing infrastructures will cost P1.9 billion.
Villafuerte said a feasibility study must be conducted before any action could be done, but he rued that he was not provided a copy and that the dam was being built without his knowledge.
Sipocot Mayor Maria Theresa dela Peña said she wanted the construction stopped until the project proponents would assure her constituents that it would not aggravate flooding in the town.
She said the municipal council had approved a resolution declaring a stop to the dam construction until a thorough study had been undertaken.
Villafuerte said he chaired Regional Development Council for several years, but no dam project had ever been proposed or submitted for approval. It suddenly cropped up this year, he said.
Assistant Secretary Tomasito B. Monzon, BRBWMP program director, described as baseless the claim of the Institute of Environmental Conservation and Research (Inecar) of the Ateneo de Naga University that the dam was unnecessary.
This is a case of seeing the trees instead of the entire forest, Monzon said.
He said that Inecar solely focused its study on the costs and perceived detrimental effects of the project. It totally ignored the benefits that Libmanan and Cabusao would derive from the dam.
Once completed, the dam will increase the annual net production of farmer-beneficiaries from P207.5 million to P593.6 million, he said.
From the present 1,686 beneficiaries, the project will directly benefit 3,005 farmers and their families as a result of the increase in the irrigated area from 2,900 hectares to 4,000 hectares.
“That is why it got the favorable endorsement of the Bicol Regional Development Council on Feb. 4 this year and the approval of the National Economic and Development Authority,” Monzon said.
He said that contrary to Inecar’s claim, the dam would cost only P700 million, not P1.9 billion.
visitors since launch day!