Dam project matutunod na

Problemado sa ECC Permit

Bicol Mail, August 5, 2010

MA-WALONG BULAN NANG suspendido an construccion kan controvercial na P1.9-bilyones na Libmanan Cabusao Dam (LCD) asin katorce por ciento (14%) pa sana an natatapos, alagad an National Irrigation Administration (NIA) dai pa nin aseguracion kun ipapadagos an proyecto.

“Maagi pa sa labot nin dagom” kun ipapadagos an implementacion kan proyecto asin an pinal na madecicion iyo si Presidente Benigno Aquino III, sabi ni Abogado Ricky Tomotorgo, encargado kan Bicol River Basin Watershed Management Project (BRBWMP). An proyecto sa patubig saro sa nasa supervicion kan agencia na dating pinupogolan ni Presidential Assistant for Bicol Affairs Tomasito Monzon, na co-terminus an puesto ni dating Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

“Balik naman sa uno” an pag-proceso kan ducomentos sa Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC), matapos irecomendar kan Task Force LCD na pundohon an construccion kan dam, segun pa ki Tomotorgo.

Si Gobernador Joey Salceda kan Albay asin chairman kan Regional Development Council (RDC) nagcrear nin Task Force Libmanan Cabusao Dam Project asin ini pinamamayohan kan DENR asin compuesto nin manlaen-laen na agencias de gobierno. An saindang findings suspendiron an construccion sagcod na dai pa nacocompleto an mga rekisitos sa ECC clearance.

Afuera pa kaini, an mga residentes kan Sipocot asin Lupi padagos na nagcocontra huli sa peligro sa tubig baha.

Sinabi pa ni Tomotorgo na sinda nagvisita sa duwang banwaan kan nakaaging semana, alagad dai man nangangahulogan na liwat naman na masikad an construccion envez balik naman sa ginigibong consultacion.

Kan nagpoon an construccion kan dam igwa na nin ECC kaya ngani si pig-isyu kan DENR kaidto an condicion asin yaon sa colatilia na pig-presentar na mayong irerelocate na mga familia, asin dai magkakaigwa nin diversion channel kaya na-aprovaran an ECC kan NIA.

Sa pag-aadal kan DPWH an gigibohon na diversion channel dai puedi ta dakul na bukid an ma-aafectaran na dakul pa an danyos sa kapalibotan asin mas dakula pa an gagastoson na fondo kan gobierno.

Pigpaliwanag kan encargado kan BRBWMP sinda nag-isip nin bagong paagi asin an decicion ninda asin iba pang agencia irelocate nalang an maafectaran na familia asin nagkaigwa na nin bagong plano, huli kaini igwa nang pagbalga sa ECC. Sa findings kan RDC dai nagsunod an ECC na pig-isyu kan DENR asin pigconsiderar na pagbabago dapat magbalik liwat sa proceso sa pagkoa kan sinambit na clearance.

Halawig na rekisitos kinakaipuhan maipaliwanag, mapoon naman sa pagconsulta sa man-iba ibang grupo, maatubang naman sa Sanggunian Bayan, yaon si macontrang familia huli ta afectado. Kaya ngani ginigibo an mga consultacion nganing macompli si rekisitos para maseguro na an ECC.

Sa hapot kun madadagos an proyecto, an simbag kan BRBWMP deficil huli ta igwa nang enot na recomendacion an RDC, ika-duwa an DENR nagtao na nin ECC alagad ngonian ma-apply naman, poon naman sa uno sa pag-proceso sagcod sa mga consultacion.

Sa Sipocot, Camarines Sur na kun haen namumugtak sa Brgy. Manangle an dam project, sinabi ni Consejal Manuel Chan na nagtalaan sinda asin an BRBWMP nin panibagong public hearing nganing maaraman kan namamanuaan kun igwa nang bagong desenyo na maseseguro na dai nin peligro sa tubig baha.

Alagad sinabi kan consejal na tindido an residentes asin oficiales local na dapat dai na idagos an construccion kan dam.

Sa Lupi, Camarines Sur tugot na si 86 na familia na afectado kan proyecto mientras na dakul man giraray na residentes an nagcocontra huli sa pighahadit na tubig baha. (Admin's Note: Dai pong kasiguruhan an totoong pagtogot kan 86 na apektadong pamilya.)

An centro kan duwang banwaan fermi nang piglalantopan nin tubig baha kaya nanindugan contra dam.

Anti-dam rally sa Abril 14

Press Release

Sipocot, CamSur—Pinagkaoroyonan kan mga namamanwaan na minakontra sa Libmanan-Cabusao Dam an sarong dakulang protesta na ilalansar sa Miyerkules, Abril 14, na gigibohon sa mga banwaan kan Sipocot asin Lupi, Camarines Sur.

Sa pinagsararong puwersa kan mga namamanwaan asin manlaen-laen na organisasyon asin sektor, minukna an Alyansa kan mga Namamanwaan laban sa Dam (AnDam) na iyo an mangengenot sa protesta. An AnDam kinukumpunir nin mga residente kan mga banwaan na Lupi asin Sipocot na biyong nahahandal sa panahon na ipadagos an proyektong dam na tinutubudan na madanyar sa mga nasambit na lugar. Kaibahan man ninda an mga residente kan mga banwaan sa primer distrito kan CamSur asin an manlaen-laen na sektor kan sosyudad na minasuporta sa saindang kawsang tinutulod, kaiba na digdi an mga concerned citizens hali sa Libmanan asin Cabusao na sinasabing manginginabang sa proyekto.

An enot na kabtang kan protesta pupunan alas-9 nin pagkaaga sa paagi kan ‘Martsa Laban sa Dam’ na gigibohon sa kalabaan kan Maharlika Highway sa Sipocot, poon Barangay Impig sagkod Barangay Tara kun sain an mga mamartsa matulak man pasiring sa Poblacion, Lupi.

Sa plasa kan Lupi gigibohon man an ikaduwang kabtang kan protesta na iyo an ‘Aráng-Banwaan: Pagtaas-Tingog Kontra sa Dam’ na sarong matuninong na prayer-rally. Alas-2 nin hapon pupunan an programa sa paagi nin Misa nin Banwaan na susundan naman kan programa nin protesta. An programa pangengenotan nin mga indibidwal na hali sa manlaen-laen na sektor asin banwaan sa CamSur na mapahayag kan saindang labi-labing pagkontra sa proyektong dam na tinutulod kan Bicol River Basin and Watershed Management Project (BRBWMP) asin man kan National Irrigation Administration (NIA) asin suportado man nin Rep. Diosdado ‘Dato’ Arroyo.

An AnDam padagos na higot na minakontra sa 2-Bilyon pisong dam huli sa kawaran nin tamang konsultasyon dapit digdi sa mga apektado asin benipisyaryo kan proyekto; pagkawara nin mga erokan asin pagkaraot nin kabuhayan kan mga paratanom mga namamanwaan; pagkaraot kan kapalibutan asin pag-abot kan mga delikadong pagbaha sa Sipocot asin Lupi; ma-anomalyab asin bakong makataong proseso kan mga nagtutulod digdi; asin kadakol pang mga dahilan na nakakaapekto sa totoong pag-uswag kan banwaan.

Press Statement (March 8, 2010)

by Vic Nierva

Kaining mga nakaaging pirang aldaw, kadakol na beses kong nadangog an sakong pangaran sa radyo. Kun bako man na ako an nakadangog, naiheras sako kan mga katood, mga katrabaho, mga estudyante, asin iba pang mga tawong nasa palibot ko. Dai man sorpresa na katakod ini kan adbokasiya ko kontra sa Libmanan-Cabusao Dam (LCD), huli ta an adbokasiyang ini sakong lantad na tinutulod, kaiba an mga pag-aadal asin pagsiyasat tanganing totoo asin makahulugan an adbokasiya bakong kampay sa duros saná.

Alagad, kaining mga nakaaging pirang aldaw, an ngaran ko tinatakod sa mga kaputikan.

Kan Biyernes, Marso 5, 2010, itinakod an ngaran ko sa subuot rally sa Libmanan, Camarines Sur, sarong bagay na nagkawsa tanganing balubagion ako sa media, mantang an pirang entidad man kan media daing pakimàno kun totoo an linuluwas sa ere o dai. Ni dai ngani maghapot man lamang kun totoo an sahot. Huli ta ako, sa ngaran kan LupiKontraDam, mayo nin inoorganisang rally. Minsan kami sa Lupi nagharapot-hapotan kun ano an isyu kan rally na inaapon samo, huli ta sagkod sa panahon na isinusurat ini, mayo kaming imbitasyon na nakukua hali sa kun siisay man na nangengenot sa rally. Sosog sa sakong pagkaaram, an rally sarong asembleya na pinadrinohan kan sarong grupo na inaapod Bayan. Kinontak ninda si Barangay Kapitan Rene Dimaculangan kan Poblacion, Lupi, Camarines Sur, na tabangan sindang maghagad permit. Alagad kun ano o para sa ano man an asembleyang nasambit, dai ako nin pagkasabot.

Kan Sabado, Marso 6, nagluwas sa radyo an intrebista ki Edgar Tapas, sarong paraoma subuot sa Libmanan. Katakod kan isyu kan rally subuot na mayo kami ni ga-alpog na pagkaaram. Nagbutas nin pahayag si Mr. Tapas na ‘madara daa siya nin sundang, ta gigibohon kaming abono.’ Sarong makosog na bantâ na dai man dapat nangyayari asin dai dapat nang ine-ere huli sa sensetibong laman kan pahayag. Alagad sa likod kaini, mayo pa man giraray nagkainteres sa kun ano man an samong masasabi, o kun ano man an masasabi kan samong lado.

Kasuudma, Lunes, Marso 8, nag-aaniningal an sakong ngaran sa ere kan mga istasyon nin radyo sa Naga sa mga sahot na ginagamit ko an sakong mga estudyante sa Ateneo de Naga University sa sakong adbokasiya. Sarong pagkadaradakulang kaputikan! Huli ta sa mga proseso mi sa LupiKontraDam, o sa pansadiri ko man na kalakawan sa adbokasiya, dai ako naggamit nin mga estudyante sa pagkaaram na an saindang buhay tibaad madanyaran. Nagtutukdo ako nin Media Studies sa Ateneo, asin aram ko na nagkakapirang estudyante an interesado sa isyu kan mga taga-Lupi sa dam, igwa saindang mga nagpa-Lupi na asin nagkondusir nin mga pag-aadal duman. Kun sinda hahapoton, naanggutan ko—asin kan iba pang paratukdo—sinda huli ta nagduman sinda na daing paaram asin dai nagsunod sa patakaran kan eskwelahan. Kun igwa man mga estudyanteng naghihiro asin nag-aadal kan mga isyu kan LCD, mga pansadiri ninda ining paghiro, mayo akong kinaaraman sa saindang mga kalakawan. Kun may mga estudyanteng naghahagad nin pagkakataon para sa sarong intrebista, tinatawan sinda nin hustong panahon, siring kan pagtrato ko sa ordinaryong taga-media, huli ta minarani sinda sako sa kapasidad na iyan. Duman sa nagsasabing irereklamo ako sa administrasyon kan Ateneo huli sa mga bagay na ini, sige po, huli ta dayaday na aram ko sa sakong kalag na bako kong kagibohan iyan.

May nagsasabi man na butasan ko na daa an pagtukdo huli ta taliwas ini sa sakong ginigibo sa adbokasiya. Alagad ano an taliwas sa pagiging paratukdo mantang nagtutulod nin sarong kawsa? Bakong sa eskwelahan tinutulod ta an katotoohan, an tama, asin an maninigo? Bakong sa eskwelahan pinapadanay ta an pagiging matarom na kritiko kan mga kalakawan na sa hiling ta lihis sa mga katukduan kan akademya? Huli ta ako nagtutubod na an paratukdo dai sana nagtutukdo kundi nagsasagibo asin naghihiro; huli ta ako nagtutubod na an paratukdo dai puwedeng nagbubuta-butahan sa mga katotoohan kan sosyudad mantang nagtutukdo nin mga teorya asin prinsipyo sa saiyang mga estudyante. Kun siring an paratukdo, dai siya maninigong apodon totoong paratukdo; robot saná siyang nagtoom nin mga leksyon na dapat niyang itukdo.

Sa liwat, boot kong ipasabot sa gabos na an katuyuhan kan LupiKontraDam asin kan gabos na aspekto kan samong adbokasiya bako sanang para sa mga taga-Lupi, kundi para ini sa gabos—para sa mga taga-Cabusao, Libmanan asin Sipocot, asin iba pang banwaan na puwedeng madanyaran kan LCD. Boot mi liwat na ipaabot sa gabos na dai kami kontra sa irigasyon, kundi kontra kami sa dam na maglulubog sa samong banwaan mantang dai man nagtataong kasiguruhan na an mga sinasabing mabebenipisyuhan mapapatubigan. Ini huli ngani ta dai man inadalan na marhay an proyekto, dai man tinawan nin magkakanigong pag-atid-átid, sa likod kan katotoohan na awad-awad na kuwarta an inuulà sa proyektong ini. Agyat asin imbitasyon mi po sa gabos na aramon asin adalan ta gabos an ginigibo kan mga proponents kan LCD tanganing maaraman ta an mga padayà ninda asin panlalansi sa mga tawo. Padanayon ta man logod gabos an totoo.

Mabalos na marhay saindo gabos.

The Blunder (and prostitution) of MAG TV

by Vic Nierva

ABSCBN Bicol's MAG TV! Oragon Na! is supposedly an entertaining telemagazine show. But last Sunday, February 7, it was not. When it presented a segment that showed the footage of the Cebu tour that BRBWMP sponsored for a handful of residents of my town Lupi, it was reduced to a mere ridiculous publicity that desperately seeks for public approval. Perhaps, it is what BRB’s idea of earning their own concept of public acceptance. Unsympathetically, a shorter version of the segment was shown on MAK (Marhay na Aga Kapamilya). Pity the stupidity; loathe the arrogance; question the inexorable waste of public money. Chito Monzon and Ricky Tomotorgo should be questioned for this.

For in fact, how many Lupi folks went to Cebu? Not even thirty—half of them, honorable municipal councilors who are BRB’s political allies and whom we abhor and no longer trust. What is the population of Lupi? The number of those who went to Cebu is, in research parlance, negligible. How, then, they came up with the boldest of information that we all are now in favor of the dam? Monzon, Tomotorgo, and their cohorts, had never gone to Lupi to face the people. Yeah, they’ve been there before, only under the reception of the honorable Sangguniang Bayan of which only one or two can draft a sensible board resolution.

In MagTV, the audience had the impression that the people of Lupi are already saying yes to the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project. In this case, the media, upon the dictates of the powerful, strikes for the nth time. The program did the people of Lupi a great injustice and disservice—when the station loudly bellows that it is ‘in the service of the Filipino.’ I say, then, go to Lupi and know the real sentiments of the people. I doubt if they’ll get any positive response to the dam project. Here enters responsibility. MagTV should apologize; MagTV should correct the notion; MagTV should tell the truth.

Only then will it be worthy of one of the noblest of Bikol terms, oragon.

Latest photos of the dam site

Photos by Jan Victor Agna

Witness how environment is very much affected by the controversial Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project.

Consultation on Dato dam held, convenor not present

by Jan Victor Agna

LUPI, Camarines Sur—The National Irrigation Administration (NIA) through the Bicol River Basin and Watershed Management Project (BPBWMP) was supposed to conduct a consultation meeting yesterday among the residents of the mentioned municipality regarding the controversial CASILLI Dam construction. However, no one from NIA had arrived.

Instead, Office of the Presidential Assistant for Bicol (OPAB) Planning Division Unit Head Melinda Bobis facilitated the entire forum at Lupi Central School Pavillion in Barangay Poblacion. According to Bobis, NIA was supposed to present its stand on the said project to the residents of Lupi. But until the end of the consultation, no one from NIA showed up.

Bobis said that the consultation was intended only for the possible 83 families to be directly affected by the dam construction. The number of families affected was determined by NIA in their latest update, added Bobis.

The idea that only 83 families will be affected by the construction of the dam angered the residents of the said municipality. Only the 83 families were expected by the organizers to attend, the other residents were not informed. However, although not given formal invitation many came to the venue expressing their anger toward the organizers of the forum. The residents did not even sign up the attendance sheet in the fear of it being used as a document for “social acceptance” of the said project.

Bobis said that the consultation was only concerned of tackling the things that will happen to the 83 families when the dam construction continues. These include their relocation, livelihood and organization in the proposed relocation site.

According to Bobis, the National Housing Authority (NHA) is already working out the relocation site. This was confirmed by NHA representative Engr. Christine Cabangon. Cabangon said that NHA is eyeing Mr. Antonio ‘Boy’ Altamarino’s estate along Andaya highway in Barangay Bulawan Sr. and Zone 3 of Barangay Poblacion. The affected families will be entitled to free house and lot in the said relocation site. Land titles will also be given to the families, furthered Cabangon.

After Cabangon’s message, a representative from Housing and Land-use Regulatory Board (HLURB) discussed their office’s role in the relocation of the 83 families. He explained that HLURB was asked by the BRBWMP to help organize the families once they are already settled in the target relocation site.

Days prior to the consultation, Barangay Chairman Rene Dimaculangan of Poblacion, Lupi, has already been informed of the consultation. However, only before the meeting started that Dimaculangan was informed that he was supposed to deliver the welcome address. In his statement, Dimaculangan reiterated that Lupi is against the dam construction. Still, he asked the Lupi constituents to air their complaints in a collected manner.

The locals affirmed Jun Palenzuela, a resident of Lupi, when he raised questions and expressed doubts about the budget allocated for the dam project that amounts to P1.9-billion. As Palenzuela did the computations, people started to applaud, many showed disapproval of the project and the consultation itself. For them, it appeared to be a mock consultation because the proponents of the consultation themselves were not around. Palenzuela’s statements incited some of the residents to walk out of the venue.

Fr. Marco Asoro, the parish priest St. Peter Baptist parish in Poblacion, also commented that communities in Lupi have not yet expressed acceptance the CASILLI Dam construction. He added that the Parish through the bishop of the Diocese of Libmanan has already sent a statement regarding the dam construction to Congressman Diosdado “Dato” Arroyo, to whom the project is greatly credited.

The consultation ended after Sebastian Perez, a former mayor of Lupi, expressed his rejection of the project. “Mararaot an kabuhayan, an eco-system, an buhay sa Lupi (The livelihood, eco-system, life in Lupi will be destroyed.) Look at what you are going to do with our land!” exclaimed Perez.

Checked

Vox Bikol Editorial
December 30, 2009

LAST DECEMBER 22, the Bicol River Basin and Watershed Management Project (BRBWMP) which is headed by Mr. Tomasito Monzon called for a press conference in which it was announced that the implementation of the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project (LCDP) was indefinitely suspended. The stated reason for the suspension was the unresolved matter regarding the relocation of more than 70 families who were identified as being adversely affected by the dam project. Once this issue has been addressed, that is, once the families have been relocated (the target date is 30 January 2010), the implementation of the dam project would resume.

We consider the "indefinite" suspension ordered by the National Irrigation Authority (NIA) a triumph for civil society in checking the state's use of its power in effecting this endeavor which was largely touted as Mrs. Arroyo's and her son's, First District Congressman Dato Arroyo, pet project. While we must note how, from the outset, these two politicians have basked-and actively pursued-the positive acclaim for the said dam project; we must also remark that with all the flak and negative publicity the LCDP has received and is receiving, both politicians have now tried to distance themselves from it. This is most particularly true in the case of Cong. Dato Arroyo who is seeking re-election. The suspension which was effected evinced that government power (or more specifically, the Arroyo Administration's power) CAN BE countered.

It can be checked.

It is true, however, that government agencies involved in the implementation of "Dato's dam project" have not acknowledged the fact that pressure from civil society groups was the cause for the suspension. Obviously a case of "saving face," the very defensive posture of these agencies regarding the purported reason for the suspension, nonetheless, confirms otherwise what they are trying to deny assiduously. Hence, while their media spinners will embark on efforts to convince the public that NIA, BRBWMP, and the principal "sponsors" of the dam project were not found out to be mistaken, the denials will only serve to undermine those efforts. The fact remains that it was after civil society groups like LupiKontraDam, aided by the academe, and supported by some unpaid quarters in media, that the indefinite suspension of "Dato's dam" came about.

Thus, while the struggle to oppose government projects which are not truly aimed at the common good continues, there is still much to celebrate in this particular victory of civil society in checking the Arroyos' power.

LupiKontraDam Statement No. 2

Disyembre 23, 2009

Suspendido an Dam alagad dagos an laban

Disyembre 15, 2009, kan nagsugo an sentral na opisina kan National Irrigation Administration na suspindihon an pagtugdok kan kontrobersyal na Libmana-Cabusao Dam Project sa Malaguico, Sipocot, Camarines Sur. Ining dam na ini iyo an nagdadara nin paghandal, takot, pati naman anggot sa mga tawo huli sa manlaen-laen na mga dahilan—mga isyu na dai masolusyunan asin masimbagan, mga paglapas nin ley na pirit tinatakupan asin binabasang-básang, mga posibleng pagkaraot nin kapalibutan, kabuhayan, búhay, asin iba pang mga bagay.

Disyembre 22 kan nagkundusir nin press conference an kampo kan Bicol River Basin and Watershed Management Project na pinamamayohan ni Mr. Tomasito Monzon asin ipinahayag ninda sa publiko an nasabing bareta kan suspensyon.

Kaiba sa press conference an pahayag man kan grupo ni Monzon na sa laog nagunong suspensyon hihingowahon na tanoson an palyadong mga programa para sa relokasyon na enot-enot pang sinabi ta nang panô-panò nin mga kahapotan. Ano an saindang magiginibo kun an lokal na gobyerno kan Lupi dai pa man minadesidir dapit digdi? O kun nagtogot na an munisipyo, palso ini nin huli ta daing pagkasabot an mga konstituwente kan banwaan.

Sa laog kan press conference, sinabi ni Atty. Ricky Tomotorgo kan BRBWMP na dai kaiba sa mga basehan an mga resulta kan pag-adal kan Institute for Environmental Conservation and Research. Asin nin huli ta kita an naghagad nin tabang sa INECAR, sa paagi kan dakulang tabang kan Diocesis nin Libmanan, labi-labi an satong pagsikwal sa pagpapasipara kan BRBWMP sa mga lado na nagkokontra sa dam project. Pinapahiling sana kan BRBWMP na dai sinda tataong magdangog sa tingog kan mga tawo, kan mga namamanwaan, na dapat nindang pagsirbihan bilang sarong ahensiya kan estado.

Kadakol na kitang binutasan na hapot na dai man ninda nasimbagan. Kadakol man sa mga hapot na ini igwang katakod na ley na kaipuhan nindang sunudon. Alagad sagkod ngunyan mayo sindang lakdang na ginigibo.

An ginibo ninda iyo na baliktadon an mga nagkokontra asin balubagion sa paagi nin pag-agyat na makisaro saindang adalan an dam. Huli kaini, liwat niyatong ibabalangibog sa nagbubungug-bungugan nindang pandangog na kita kontra sa dam, asin dai kita matogot kaiyan huli sa kadakol na dahilan.

Dai pa ninda nasisimbagan an mga tuyaw ta sa palyado nindang Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) na pirit nindang tinatanos.

Dai pa ninda nasisimbag an mga nangaranan tang paglapas ninda sa mga nakatalaan sa Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) na pirit nindang hinahanapan nin palsong paliwanag.

Dai pa ninda nasosolusyunan an tuyaw na mayo—liwat, mayo!—an dam project na ini kan sinasabi nindang social acceptance, na pirit man nindang sinasabing igwa daa.

Pirit nindang pinapalukso sa pinapahamotan nindang programa sa relokasyon an mga tawo—sarong gawè na padayà sana asin pagratak sa derecho kan lambing namamanwaan bilang miyembro kan estado. Aram ninda ini huli ta sinda may mga inadalan man, alagad makangangalas asin makaduda na pinapasipara ninda ini asin tuyong minamadali an proyekto.

Nagtutubod an LupiKontraDam sa mga proyektong hustong inaadalan asin dai minamadali tanganing maiimplementar minsan kulang sa pagsiyasat. Sinasabi kan BRBWMP na hihingowahon ninda maitanos an programa sa relokasyon sagkod Enero 30, 2010. Garo baga an sinasabi nindang topographic survey kayang taposon nin sarong bulan kun an topo survey na gigibohon ninda sapusuan asin sinsero. Ano daw ta dai sinda makahalat? Ano daw ta grabe an pulus-pugos nindang taposon tulos an dam? Mga hapot na haloy nang inaapon sainda asin sinisimbag nin mahahamis na tataramon na pirming may kaibang mga pangako siring sa Comprehensive Development Plan asin iba pa na kadaklan surat sa tubig sana.

An suspensyon kan dam sarong hararom na hangos para sa LupiKontraDam—an katiriponan kan mga konstituwente kan Lupi—pati man kan Sipocot—na nagkokontra sa dam. Alagad padagos an samong pagsikwal sa proyektong ini na dai inadalan, kun sain an mga tawo sa Lupi, pati naman sa kadagaan kaini, kulang an saindang atensyon na itinao. Padagos an samong pagkontra!

Kun kaya hinihimo mi an mga lakdang na magtataas sa samong mga agrangay sa legal na antas, tanganing orog na matawan kami nin magkakanigong tingog na saindang dadangogon nin may naghihinanyog na puso.

Sa pahayag na ini, yaon man an samong pagpasabot duman sa mga paraomang dai minaoyon sa samong pagkontra. Logod magtubod kamo na an kinokontra mi bako an irigasyon o patubig, nin huli ta kadakol man sa LupiKontraDam an mga paraoma asin mga paratanom. Nagtutubod po kami na an patubig saro sa mga importanteng aspekto kan agrikultura, saro ining programa na dapat epektibo asin may kahusayan na tinatao sato kan gobyerno. An pagkontra mi po sa Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project sana. Nagtutubod kami na bako ini an pinakamarhay na opsyon para sa patubig. Kaining nakaaging mga semana, inaagyat po kami na magtao nin iba pang mga alternatibong patubig lain sa dam, an samo pong simbag iyo na orog na maninigo ining simbagon kan BRBWMP asin NIA huli ta sinda an mga ahensiya na igwang katongdan sa mga siring na proyekto. Sa totoo sana, ini saro sa mga kaluyahan kan pag-aadal kan BRBWMP asin NIA dapit sa dam project, huli ta dai man lamang sinda naghingowa na magkaigwa nin nagkakapirang opsyon, nagtapsok tulos sa dam bilang patubig.

An suspensyon kan Libmanan-Cabusao Dam linuwas na kan NIA Central, alagad an LupiKontraDam padagos sa pagkontra—pagkontrang may kaibang pag-aadal, may pagsiyasat sa maninigong proseso, asin may totoong pagmakulog sa gabos na namamanwaan.

Mabuhay po kita gabos! Maogmang Pasko asin matuninong na bagong taon saindo!

Photos from the Dec. 8 Forum

Fernando Hall, Ateneo de Naga University

December 8, 2009

For the first time, the proponents and those who opposes the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project came face-to-face with each other in forum sponsored by the Diocese of Libmanan on December 8, 2009, at the Fernando Hall of Ateneo de Naga University.

LupiKontraDam, however, remains strong in its conviction that none of the questions and concerns they raised were given due attention and answers. The movement is thankful to to Diocese of Libmanan for sponsoring the forum.

Fr. Granwel Pitapit of the Social Action Center of the Diocese of Libmanan moderates the forum. Ateneo Social Science Research Center Director Dr. Cristina Lim asks the proponents one of the essential questions of the day: "What is your definition of social acceptability?" A question which remains unanswered to date.

Engr. Luzviminda Martirez of NIA Region V, presents the details and plans of the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project.

Dr. Emelina Regis of Ateneo de Naga University's Institute for Environmental Conservation and Research (INECAR) presents the INECAR Report that dismisses the need for a dam to irrigate the agricultural lands of Libmanan and Cabusao. Dr. Regis also reported on the dangers of the project as well as the alternatives that may be taken in lieu of a dam.

Victor Dennis T. Nierva, one of LupiKontraDam organizers, presents the concerns, fears and demands of the citizens of Lupi.

Concerned citizens of Lupi (in black LupiKontraDam tshirts) attend the forum.

Presidential Assistant for Bicol and BRBWMP Director Tomasito Monzon (in light blue polo barong, reading something), BRBWMP Head of Operations Atty. Ricky Tomotorgo beside Monzon), and NIA PIO Ed Yu (in front of Monzon) attend the forum.

Concerned Lupi residents listen to points raised by the proponents and their fellow KontraDam companions.

Dato mulls suspension of controversial dam project

by Jonas Cabiles Soltes
Vox Bikol, December 11, 2009

NAGA CITY (11 December) —Camarines Sur Representative Dato Arroyo is willing to recommend to the National Irrigation Administration the temporary suspension of the construction of the P1.9 billion Libmanan-Cabusao dam project amid “social acceptability concerns,” Presidential Assistant Secretary for Bicol Affairs Tomasito Monson said Tuesday.

“Congressman Arroyo said he would recommend to concerned agencies especially National Irrigation Administration to conduct further study on the effects of the dam to surrounding areas.”

Speaking at the first-ever forum between the proponents of the dam and those who opposes it, Monson also said that as early as the first week of November, there had been weekly talks with concerned government agencies to consider the temporary suspension of the construction of the dam, while a further study on the effects and social acceptability of the dam was underway.

Held last December 8 at the Richard Michael Fernando Hall in Ateneo de Naga University, the forum was sponsored by the Diocese of Libmanan, which seeks to mediate the “divisive” issue.

Arroyo said the negative effects of the construction of the dam were being considered.

“But we cannot order the outright stoppage of the construction of the dam because we do not have the authority to do that,” he said referring to his office.

“Only the central office of the National Irrigation Administration has the power to do that.”

He also said that there was a due process to be followed before the agency can order temporary stoppage of the construction of the dam.

“For instance, the least the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) can do is to monitor the implementation of the project although the DENR Secretary can revoke its environmental compliance certificate.”

He said the infrastructure requirement for the dam, including the replacements for the spillways and footbridges that would be submerged by the dam’s backwater, was being processed by the Department of Budget and management.

He said despite the readiness of the budget for needed infrastructure, the ordering of temporary stoppage still would be possible.

“Temporary stoppage could not be ordered outright now despite the ongoing talks. But the construction of the dam naturally is being delayed by the rainy spell the province is experiencing.”

He assured all those present in the forum that the government could even consider the issuance of a cease and desist order if concerned agencies assessed that the dam project would do more harm than good.

“Hopefully we can finalize our decision before December ends.”

But Victor Dennis Nierva, who acts as the spokesperson of Lupi Kontra Dam (Lupi Against Dam), was not convinced.

“We were not born yesterday. I would not believe him (Monson) until the time the construction of the dam was stopped. They are just saying that they are open to the temporary stoppage of the construction of the dam to appease us, just like what they (dam proponents) would always do.

The dam was touted as President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s gift to son Dato on his 34th birthday September last year.

Dato is the representative of the first district of Camarines Sur, which recently has been reapportioned into two new districts.

Proponents of the Libmanan-Cabusao irrigation and dam project said the dam would increase agricultural productivity by irrigating4,000 hectares of farms.

But its opponents said it would cause the inundation of fertile agricultural lands in Lupi and Sipocot towns and the displacement of hundreds of families.

LupiKontraDam Statement (Dec.1)

An statement na ini binasa ni Manay Emily Asma sa atubang kan mga nakisaro sa pagheras kan INECAR sa report kan institusyon dapit sa Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project. Ginibo an pagtiripon sa plasa kan Poblacion Lupi kan December 1. Igwa ining katuyuhan na magbalangibog nin impormasyon dapit sa dam project na kiakatakutan kan mga tawo.

Namomotan na mga kahimanwa:

Sa ngaran po kan LupiKontraDam, minarhay ming magpaluwas nin pahayag tangani man na mapara an mga hapot dapit sa kun ano nang mga lakdang an satuyang ginigibo.

An, LupiKontraDam, na paghiro ta gabos na taga-digdi sa Lupi, nag-asumir kan posisyon na magrepresentar sato gabos sa laban tang ini kontra sa Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project. Ini po huli naman sa katotoohan na kaipuhan bilog asin pusog an satong boses na iaatubang sa mga paratolod kan proyektong dam, orog na sa mga ahensiyang arog kan NIA asin BRB. Kaiba naman po kaini an makulit asin sigidong pagtolod kan satong mga pinapakipaglaban sa lokal na gobyerno kan satong banwaan.

Sa ngunyan po, an LupiKontraDam igwa nin minasunod na katuyuhan:

ENOT. Aramon an mga detalye dapit sa dam, kalapon an mga impormasyon, datos asin iba pang mga katotoohan na kaipuhan na gayong maaraman ta bilang banwaan na direktang maaapektaran kan dam;

IKADUWA. I-organisa an mga komunidad, mga barangay, manlaen-laen na sector, asin makipagtabangan sa lambang saro, tanganing an dalagan kan impormasyon asin komunikasyon dapit sa adbokasiya magin marhay;

IIKATOLO. Iluwas sa media asin iba pang institusyon an satong mga agrangay. Huli po ta kapot kan balyong lado an mga establisimyento siring kan mga mayor na ahensiya kan gobyerno, mga lideres na dapat kutang magprotekta satuyan, an mayoriya kan mass media, minarhay tang piriton na makahanap nin mga media partners asin sa herak nin Dios, dawa mayo kitang kuwartang pansustenir, nakakaluwas man an satong mga agrangay sa radyo asin tinatawan man kita nin magkakanigong panahon.

IKAAPAT. Maghagad tabang sa mga manlaenlaen na institusyon tanganing maliwanagan kita dapit sa dam, asin man tanganing suportahan kita sa satong pinapakipaglaban; An presensiya po kan INECAR ngunyan sarong patotoo digdi, nin huli po ta kita, bilang banwaan, dai nakikilaban na mayong basehan. Kun pinuputikan ninda kita, maaaraman ta iyan, nin huli ta nasa likod ta an mga institusyon nanagtotolod nin katotoohan, arog kan INECAR. Huli pot a nagtutubod kita na pinagnenegaran po kita kan katotoohan, research asin mga pag-aadal an satong ginigibo; asin,

IKALIMA. Magbilog nin mga lakdang na padagos na mataong kasimbagan sa satong mga kahapotan asin mga paghandal.

Hain po ngunyan an LupiKontraDam?

Inaasumir po kan LupiKontraDam an responsibilidad ta tabangan an lambang saro sa satuya na magkaigwa nin representasyon sa adbokasiyang ini, kun kaya hinahagad mi an saindong tabang na makisaro sa pagkontra sa dam.

Lataw pong marhay an LupiKontraDam sa internasyunal na batalya. An website na lupikontradam.tk, kun sain mababasa an gabos na impormasyon asin debelopment dapit sa satong pagkontra, nababasa na kan maabot limang ribong katao hali sa manlaenlaen na parte kan kinaban—trenta y kuwarto mil na po an paliwat-liwat na minabisita sa website na ini. Nagtataong feedback asin suporta digdi an satong mga kahimanwa na mayo digdi sa satong banwaan, nagtatrabaho sa ibang lugar, patisa balyong dagat, kaiba na an kadakol na mga taga-Colacling na nasa Italya ngunyan. Igwa man pong mga padikitdikit na mga pro-dam na nagbabaray-basay paminsan-minsan, risang marhay an saindang katuyuhan na kita papanluyahan sa satong itinotood.

Dai pa lang po nahahaloy, nagpaluwas kita nin mga streamer na nagpapahiling kan satong pagkontra. An mga streamer po ini kakadikit kun kaya dai pa man lataw na marhay maski ngani nakakalat ini sa satong munisipalidad.

Paminsan-minsan natatawan an po kitang panahon sa mga radyo na mailuwas an satong mga inaagrangay sa proyektong dam na ini. Minsan po ngani aram tang may peligrong kasabay an mga pagluwas na ini sa media, alagad kaipuhan ta po an tabang na maibalangibog an mga katampalasan na ginigibo sa sato kan nagkakapirang ahensiya nin gobyerno.

Sairisay pong mga institusyon an nagtatabang sato?

Saksi po kita ngunyan sa presensya kan INECAR, na ebidensiya kan dakulang tabang na tinatao sato kan Ateneo de Naga University. Huli po ngani ta nahihiling kan unibersidad an importansiya na tabangan an kasaraditan na arog ta, nagkakapirang institusyon pa kan Ateneo an saindang pinapahiro tanganing magsaliksik dapit sa dam project. An Ateneo Social Science Research Center, dai po mahaloy, maabot sa natad kan mga barangay na hinihiling na maaapektaran kan pagsùgong kan tubig-salog, para aramon an satong mga kamugtakan. Dai po kita magngalas kun igwang mga pag-aadal na gibohon sa satong mga barangay an iba pa man na institusyon. Siring po kutang mga bagay an hinahanap ta sa mga proponents kan dam na ini, alagad dai ninda ginigibo. An ginigibo ninda mga padaya asin sagin-sagin na pagpapahiling nin pagmakulog.

Tinatabangan man po kita kan Diocesis nin Libmanan. Dai man po nagduwa-duwa si Obispo Jose Rojas na magsurat sa Ateneo tanganing ihagad kita nin tabang na maliwanagan sa laban na ini. Pruweba po kaiyan an presensya kan INECAR ngunyan. Sa Sabado, Disyembre singko, papadrinohan kan Simbahan an kaenot-enoting pagharampangan kan mga proponents asin mga banwaan asin mga nagkokontra dam, gigibohon po ini alas-otso nin aga, sa Fernando Hall kan Ateneo de Naga University. Sa okasyon na nasambit liwat na hahagadon ta sa mga proponents na mag-aparesir digdi sa satong banwaan tanganing maaraman ninda an makosog tang tingog na habo ta sa dam!

Kan Sabado, riinanihan ta an sarong grupo nin mga abogado taga-UP na nagpresentar man nin posibleng mga tabang legal para sa satong pagkontra sa dam. Sa presente pinag-aadalan ninda an istorya kan proyekto. Importante po ining marhay nin huli ta paulit-ulit nganing sabi kan BRB asin NIA na korte suprema sana an makakapaontok sa proyekto. Sinasabi ninda ini na garo baga may halangkaw an mga entidad na ini kan estado kisa sa mga namamanwaan na nagbubuwis tangani sanang matustusan an mga proyektong arog kan dam. Kun an agyat legal, hanapan ta po nin legal na paagi.

Enot na enot pa po, nakalap ta an mga dokumento na makakatabang sa sato sa orog pang pagkasabot sa proyekto. An LupiKontraDam an nangongorog na pinagkukuahan nin impormasyon dapit sa dam project. Poon po sa pinapangimot na Environmental Impact Statement hanggan sa mga minutes kan mga meeting kan mga proponents, hinihingowa tang magkaigwa tanganing dai ninda sabihon na daing basehan aa satong mga pagkontra. Mala po ngani ta huli sa mga dokumentong ini, nadudukayan ta pa an sarasaralapid na mga remalaso, problema, karibongan asin mga anomalya sa proyektong ini. Asin padagos ta ining iluluwas sa media.

An gabos pong ini satuyang hihingowahon na magibohan nin legal na mga aksiyon na katapusan iyo an magpapapondo sa proyekto, huli ta iyan an kabotan kan namamanwaan.

Ano po an maninigo tang gibohon bilang mga namamanwaan?

Enot, iyo po an pagpakosog sa satong pagtubod na kita orog na makapangyarihan kisa sa mga ibinotong opisyal. Sa liwat po, pakosogon ta an satong pagtubod na kita, gurano man kita kasadit na namamanwaan, orog kitang makusog kisa sa mga opisyal kan banwaan, kan probinsya, kan nasyon! Romdomon ta na kita an nagluklok sainda sa puwesto. Asin yaon sinda diyan bako na pagsirbihan kundi na maglingkod sa sato. Kita an saindang mga among! Bako kita nindang mga oripon na pagbabasang-basangon sana. Sa mga opisyal po nin banwaan na yaon digdi, giromdomon po nindo ini: kami an kaipuhan nindong dangogon. Kami an kaipuhan nindong paglingkudan. Pakarhayon po nindo an saindong trabaho. Sa mga miyembro kan sanggunian, maninigo sanang panindugan nindo an pagiging mga representante kan mga namamanwaan. Panindugan nindo kami!

Romdomon ta po gabos na trabaho kan satong mga lideres na maglingkod, asin itao sato an gabos tang kaipuhan. Dai kita dapat magpasalamat sa ano man na itinato ninda!

Para po sa ikakokosog kan satong tingog, padakolon ta pa an mga paskil asin mga streamers na nagpapahiling na kita kontra sa dam. Kun igwa po kita nin mga lumang sako, pinturahan ta po ini nin ‘Kontra kami sa dam!’o ano man na pahayag nin pagkontra, asin ibalandra ta sa satong mga natad, harong, plasa, asin mga lugar na nahihiling. Tanganing mahiling kan gabos na kontra an Lupi sa dam.

An mga barangay pong apektado mas maninigo man na magpaluwas nin mga barangay resolution na nagkokontra sa dam.

An Sangguniang Bayan po kan Lupi dapat magimata na na linalansi sana kita kan mga proponents kan dam. Asin maninigo an resolution kan banwaan na nagkokontra kita sa dam. Romdomon ta po na mayo kita ni sarong kapakinabangan sa proyektong dam na ini asin an saindang mga pinapangako sato siring sa inaapod nindang Comprehensive Development Plan, mga pangakong surat sa tubig sana, asin daing basehan. Ginigibo ninda ini tanganing mapatubod kita asin mapa-oyon sa pagkonstruir kan dam. Padagos kaining ilulubog an satong banwaan. Padagos an satong kawaran.

Panoon ta po an satong sadiri nin kaaraman. Magdangog kita sa radyo aroaldaw orog na sa pagkaaga. Kun kaipuhan makidangog, kun mayo po kitang radyo. Romdomon ta po na madali kitang mapatubod kun kulang kita sa pagkasabot. Aramon ta po an mga pag-usad nin impormasyon dapit sa proyektong dam. Magin pabor o kontra man ini sa sato. Digdi po kita makua kan mga masurunod tang lakdang.

Magin alerto po kita sa mga paghiroasin mga ginigibo sa satong mga barangay. Magin alerto kita sa mga tawong minabisita sa sato. Kun may magkaulay po sato dapit sa dam, kuahon po an saindang pangaran, ahensiya o institusyon na nirerepresentar, ilista kun kaipuhan an saindang mga hapot. An gabos pong impormasyon puwedeng gamiton kontra sa sato. Kun proponents po sinda kan dam, puwede ta sindang hapoton kan satong mga agrangay asin paghandal. Dai po magbutas nin impormasyon kun sa hiling nindo kaipuhan. Magin marigmat po kita asin ipaglaban an satong mga derecho bilang namamanwaan.

Sa ngunyan po, madadangog sa DWNX asin DWOK FM an infomercial na nagkokontra sa satong mga dai pabor sa dam. Minasagin-sagin ini na aking paraoma, alagad binabalu-bagi kita asin inaapod kitang mga peste daa kitang minaulang sa patubig. Sa lado pong ini, garo baga mayo kita nin derecho na ipaglaban an satong mga sadiri, rogaring asin kabuhayan. Sosog sa mga kinukuahan ta nin impormasyon, nagbayad an balyong lado nin singkwenta mil pesos bulan bulan para digdi, asin ini madurar nin anom na bulan. Sa duwang istasyon, sais siyentos mil an ginagastos ninda para kita balubagion! Dai ta ini itogot. Ipahiling ta po na an mga taga-Lupi nagkakasararo sa pagkontra huli ta ini paglapas kan satong dignidad asin mga derechong pantao. Minakontra po kita huli ta dai kita puwedeng pagbasang-basangon bilang banwaan.

Piriton ta po kumbinsihon an satong mga lokal na lideres na sorogan kita. Kun puwede sanang aroaldaw tang gibohon an pagkulit sainda, gibohon ta po. Nin huli ta dakula an saindang magiginibo tanganing maitama an prosesong dapat sunudon kan mga proponents kan dam project na ini.

Sagkod digdi pi nguna an magigin pahayag kan LupiKontraDam. Mabalos pong marhay sa mga minasuporta sa sato. Magkasararo po kita sa pagkontra. Pakusugon ta pa po an satong mga pamibi. Ipaglaban ta po an satong banwaan! Mabuhay an Lupi!

Dios mabalos pong marhay sa saindong pamibi asin pakikisumaro!


Victor Dennis T. Nierva
Convenor

Suspended

Editorial, Vox Bikol, November 21, 2009

We express support to the Regional Development Council which is headed by Albay Governor Joey Salceda for ordering the temporary suspension.of the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project, the controversial multi-million "promise". of Mrs.Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her son, Congressman Dato Arroyo to Libmanan farmers when Cong. Arroyo was just about to run for office.

The RDC suspension was issued in view of reported deviations to the proposed project, as well as to review its compliance to the environmental clearance certificate. Similarly, the suspension was enforced "[to] look into the alleged complaints of various organizations concerning the possible threats such as flooding and displacements of families to be affected once the dam project is completed."

An independent study of the possible effects of Dato's dam was in fact conducted by the Institute for Environmental Conservation and Research (INECAR) of Ateneo de Naga University. Among the results of its research, according to INECAR director Dr. Emelina Regis, is that the potential benefits of the dam project are countered by the adverse direct impact to the towns of Lupi and Sipocot.

Bicol River Basin and Water Management Project (BRBWMP) Assistant Director Tomasito Monzon has of course belied these claims of INECAR. Monzon corrected INECAR's claim that the dam project costs Php 1.9 Billion, stating that it is only Php 700 Million. He also denied that 13 barangays of Lupi would be inundated because of the dam; instead, Monzon clarified that only eight villages would be submerged under water.

Further, Monzon also expounded on the immeasurable benefits of the dam project to the towns of Libmanan and Cabusao.

What Monzon and BRBWMP fail to address, however, are the issues which prompted the RDC to issue a suspension in order to review the dam project. Monzon's correction, for instance, that "only" eight barangays would be inundated instead of 13 is cold comfort to the residents of the eight barangays who were most probably not informed--much less, consulted--about the drastic consequences of Dato's dam.

Moreover, while Monzon keeps insisting on the benefits the dam would provide to Libmanan and Cabusao, he does not seem to be concerned with the residents of Lupi and Sipocot who themselves are not direct beneficiaries of the project. In other words, while the raw end of the dam deal is suffered by the people of Lupi and Sipocot, Monzon can only say that it would redound anyway to the good of Libmanan and Cabusao farmers.

It is thus propitious that the dam project is suspended for review. For those immediately in-charge of the project seem to be determined in implementing it, come hell or yes, high water.

Due this, we urge the RDC review team to be judicious in its efforts and shun white-washing the results of its probe. Lives are truly at stake here, and not just a promise made in order to win a seat in Congress.

RDC suspends Dato's dam project

Review team to look into reported project deviations and anomalies

by Mar S. Arguelles with report from Alec A. Santos
Vox Bikol, Saturday, November 21st, 2009

LEGAZPI CITY, Nov. 19—The Bicol Regional Development Council (RDC) directed the temporary suspension of the P700-million Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project (LCDP) in Camarines Sur pending results of a project review.

RDC Chairman and Albay Gov. Joey Salceda directed the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) in Bikol to temporarily put the project on hold following the creation of an RDC project review team composed of technical people from the RDC, Environment Management Bureau (EMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the NIA.

The team will review the project based on the approved standards and environment clearance certificate issued, including the reported project deviations.

It will also look into the alleged complaints of various organizations concerning the possible threats such as flooding and displacements of families to be affected once the dam project is completed.

The RDC has earlier endorsed the project for approval to the NEDA central office and it was subsequently approved for implementation.

However, when the project was started, some flaws were noted such as the awarding of the contract for the dam construction to A.M. Oreta and Co. were not presented to the RDC Infrastructure Coordinating Committee; and the failure of NIA to conduct a topographic survey of the area upstream of the dam prior to preparation of a feasibility study.

"Those flaws were not there when we endorsed it for ICC approval subject to ECC compliance and as part of economic resiliency plan" Salceda said.

Salceda said "the RDC, as an institution believes that the project would be beneficial to the region's economic development but NIA has to address the fundamental issues concerning the project."

Gilbert Gonzales, Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) regional director, cited some deviations made by the project proponent in some components, which were not stipulated in the DENR Environment Clearance Certificate (ECC) issued by Environment Secretary Lito Atienza.

He specifically questioned the viability of the flood mitigation measure instituted by the NIA and the possible displacement of hundreds of families, including its relocation once the construction of the dam goes full blast.

Gonzales said he has convened a task group composed of DPWH, NIA, Project Management Office of the Bicol River Basin and Watershed Management Project (BRBWMP), and EMB to discuss and address the various concerns and come up with a drawing board of alternatives.

He said the team would conduct sight visitation and validate if indeed there were changes or deviations made in the project.

"Dam not needed"

Earlier, researchers from the Ateneo de Naga University's Institute for Environmental Conservation and Research (INECAR), headed by Dr. Emilina Regis conducted an initial investigative study to weigh the potential effects of the proposed dam project.

Dr. Regis explains that while proponents of the project have often cited the benefits of the dam to the farmlands in the towns of Cabusao and Libmanan, officials of the National Irrigation Authority (NIA) and the Bicol River Basin and Water Management Project have failed to emphasize that the municipalities of Lupi and Sipocot will be "direct impact areas which may be adversely affected by the project."

According to the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) of the NIA, Lupi and Sipocot were classified as indirect impact areas. Regis believes, however, that when the dam is completed, it will directly affect 13 barangays of Lupi, or about a third of all barangays of the town. The researchers also claim that the presence of several tributaries and creeks can also mean that more residents will be affected than initially believed.

The proposed dam is expected to be 15 meters high and 150 meters wide. When completed, the dam will provide irrigation to rice fields 10.28 kilometers away in the towns of Cabusao and Libmanan. According to the INECAR's report, the system is "absurd" especially since it would be easier to connect to the river system nearer the beneficiaries.

Another concern raised by Dr. Regis and her team is the threat of pollution. Citing the soil composition in the proposed dam area, Dr. Regis says that the rising waters would erode the riverbank upstream and strong currents would carry sand, silt, and clay downstream only to be trapped by the dam. Household water and organic materials can then result in the uncontrolled growth of phytoplankton. This, in turn, can lead to algal bloom and the subsequent suffocation of fish in the river. The report adds that this can have a tremendous impact on the biodiversity in the area.

A similar study conducted by researchers in 2004 of the Barit River, which drains Lake Buhi also suggests that the hydraulic control structure there is one of the primary causes of the deterioration of the water quality in the said river. The report points out that the highly toxic quality of the lake water has resulted in residents being infected by contact dermatitis.

Dr. Regis and the INECAR also challenged the official EIS of the NIA, saying that the report focused mainly on the Libmanan-Cabusao situation without giving much consideration to the directly affected areas of Lupi and Sipocot. The same EIS also claims that the dam would cause 186 hectares of land to be permanently inundated. INECAR's report points out, however, that there are at least 13 tributaries not mentioned in the report that may have profound effects on many communities upstream.

The NIA's EIS also claimed that Brgy. Malaguico, where the proposed dam will be built, has "no reported flood occurrences except low lying adjoining rivers and creeks." Based on interviews and local accounts, researchers say that while flood waters often pass through quickly, the water level often reaches treetops as evidenced by the presence of plastic bags and various other debris on the branches. Furthermore, flood waters brought by Typhoon Rosing in 1995 inundated much of Lupi's town proper, which on average, stands at 14 meters above sea level.

The presence of a new large body of water can also place pressure on the riverbanks and the dam itself, potentially resulting in dam failure and flash floods, the report says. Dr. Regis also said that it is "surprising that a dam should be constructed for obtaining only irrigation water and inundate 13 barangays permanently, destroy vegetation, and relocate people."

Victor Nierva, one of the dam project's vocal critics, agrees with the researchers' findings. According to Nierva, there were also anomalies especially with how the affected residents and citizens in Lupi and Sipocot were informed about the project.

Based on interviews with local residents, the official consultations convinced them to initially agree with the plans because of the supposed benefits. However, they claim that government officials who presided over the consultations failed to mention the impact and effect the construction and presence of the dam would have on them and their livelihood.

Assurance

Meanwhile, the BRBWMP assured stakeholders that the dam project would be beneficial in improving the lives of the community in the area.

Assistant Secretary Tomasito Monson, BRBWMP program director, belied the claim of INECAR that the dam is unnecessary, saying it was without basis.

He said INECAR totally ignored the benefits of the LCDP, which are very substantial in terms of improving the lives of its beneficiaries and the local economy of the towns of Libmanan and Cabusao in the first district of Camarines Sur.

No mention of benefits to the towns of Lupi and Sipocot were mentioned by Monzon, however.

He said that once the LCDP is finished, it will increase the annual net production value of the farmer-beneficiaries from P207.5 million to P593.6 million. 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.

Monzon said that with the increase in the annual net production value from P207.5 million to P593.6 million, the LCDP was deemed financially and economically feasible.

RDC Bicol endorsed LCDP for funding on Feb. 4, 2009 as the project supported the objectives of the Bicol Medium Term Regional Development Plan and because of its social and economic benefits.

Monzon clarified that contrary to the claim of INECAR, the cost of the dam was only P700 million, not P1.9-billion.

Based on NIA data, the P 1.9-billion was the total allocation for the four major components of the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam Project (LCDP), which include aside from the dam, the construction of a 10.28-kilometers of link canal, 10.75-kilometers of service road, and the construction of new and rehabilitation of existing irrigation and drainage facilities to serve some 4,000 hectares in the towns of Libmanan and Cabusao.

Monzon also belied Inecar's claim that 13 villages in Lupi will be inundated once the dam becomes operational. The dam feasibility study prepared by NIA revealed that only eight of the 38 villages in Lupi and two of the 46 barangays in Sipocot would be affected by the back water of the dam.

The initial result of the recent survey conducted by NIA to validate its previous surveys and the flood that happened on Nov. 5, where the water level in the area actually reached elevation 15 (15 meters), showed that the flood affected only nine houses in Barangay Lupi Viejo, the town's poblacion, instead of the estimated 210 households previously identified by NIA in its previous surveys.

The BRBWMP plans to relocate some 323 households in 10 villages in Lupi and Sipocot as they would be affected by the rise of the water level once the dam is finished. But with the survey result and actual flood level that occurred on Nov. 5, Monzon said that the number of residents that need to be resettled will be lesser than the original number.

A comprehensive development plan for the affected residents is now being finalized by the BRBWMP's Project Management Office (PMO).

Aside from the provision of resettlement program for the affected residents who will be given houses and lots, the plan covers payment of just compensations for damages to properties and crops; livelihood opportunities; replacement of three spillways that will be submerged with new concrete bridges; and other packages of benefits.

As to the recommendation of AdeNU's environment institute for the government to consider less costly alternatives to the dam, Monzon said that the dam was the most economical and the only viable alternative to the expensive operation of the existing pump irrigation system.

"It's a long time investment to ensure that the livelihood of the 3,000 farming families in Libmanan and Cabusao is uplifted and sustained," he said.

Researchers: dam not needed

by Alec Francis A. Santos

Vox Bikol/Bicol Mail

Researchers from the Ateneo de Naga University’s Institute for Environmental Conservation and Research (INECAR), headed by Dr. Emilina Regis conducted an initial investigative study to weigh the potential effects of the proposed Libmanan-Cabusao dam project.

Accompanied by staff researchers as well as local personalities and members of the media, Dr. Regis acted on the request made by concerned citizens of Lupi where the proposed dam will be built. In the report made available to journalists and interested parties, the INECAR claimed that because of the “serious apprehension of the people”, and because the “matter is of serious concern,” the research body opted to conduct a study to assess the current status of the project and its effects on the people and environment.

Dr. Regis explains that while proponents of the project have often cited the benefits of the dam to the farmlands in the towns of Cabusao and Libmanan, officials of the National Irrigation Authority (NIA) and the Bicol River Basin and Water Management Project have failed to emphasize that the municipalities of Lupi and Sipocot will be “direct impact areas which may be adversely affected by the project.”

According to the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) of the NIA, Lupi and Sipocot were classified as indirect impact areas. Regis believes, however, that when the dam is completed, it will directly affect 13 barangays of Lupi, or about a third of all barangays of the town. The researchers also claim that the presence of several tributaries and creeks can also mean that more residents will be affected that initially believed.

The proposed dam is expected to be 15 meters high and 150 meters wide. When completed, the dam will provide irrigation to rice fields 10.28 kilometers away in the towns of Cabusao and Libmanan. According to the INECAR’s report, the system is “absurd” especially since it would be easier to connect to the river system nearer the beneficiaries.

Pollution a By-product

Another concern raised by Dr. Regis and her team is the threat of pollution. Citing the soil composition in the proposed dam area, Dr. Regis says that the rising waters would erode the riverbank upstream and strong currents would carry sand, silt, and clay downstream only to be trapped by the dam. Household water and organic materials can then result in the uncontrolled growth of phytoplankton. This, in turn, can lead to algal bloom and the subsequent suffocation of fish in the river. The report adds that this can have a tremendous impact on the biodiversity in the area.

A similar study conducted by researchers in 2004 of the Barit River, which drains Lake Buhi also suggests that the hydraulic control structure there is one of the primary causes of the deterioration of the water quality in the said river. The report points out that the highly toxic quality of the lake water have resulted in residents being infected by contact dermatitis.

Dr. Regis and the INECAR also challenged the official EIS of the NIA, saying that the report focused mainly on the Libmanan-Cabusao situation without giving much consideration to the directly affected areas of Lupi and Sipocot. The same EIS also claims that the dam would cause 186 hectares of land to be permanently inundated. INECAR’s report points out, however, that there are at least 13 tributaries not mentioned in the report that may have profound effects on many communities upstream.

The NIA’s EIS also claimed that Brgy. Malaguico, where the proposed dam will be built, has “no reported flood occurrences except low lying adjoining rivers and creeks.” Based on interviews and local accounts, researchers say that while flood waters often pass through quickly, the water level often reaches treetops as evidenced by the presence of plastic bags and various other debris on the branches. Furthermore, flood waters brought by Typhoon Rosing in 1995 inundated much of Lupi’s town proper, which on average, stands at 14 meters above sea level.

The presence of a new large body of water can also place pressure on the riverbanks and the dam itself, potentially resulting in dam failure and flash floods, the report says. Dr. Regis also said that it is “surprising that a dam should be constructed for obtaining only irrigation water and inundate 13 barangays permanently, destroy vegetation, and relocate people.”

Researchers also cast doubt on the reliability of the EIS especially regarding the issue of seismic activity or earthquakes. According to the official statement of the NIA, the proposed dam will be designed to survive tremors up to magnitude 7.6. Dr. Regis, explains that the soil and rock composition also plays a crucial role in determining the risk of dam failure due to earthquakes. The INECAR investigation discovered that the soil in proposed dam area is composed of clay, sandy clay, loamy sand, and sand, soft materials that would further prolong and even intensify the effects of ground movement.

Residents Angered

Victor Dennis T. Nierva, one of the dam project’s vocal critics, agrees with the researchers’ findings. According to Nierva, there were also anomalies especially with how the affected residents and citizens in Lupi and Sipocot were informed about the project. Based on interviews with local residents, the official consultations convinced them to initially agree with the plans because of the supposed benefits. However, they claim that government officials who presided over the consultations failed to mention the impact and effect the construction and presence of the dam would have on them and their livelihood.

In fact, Nierva says that some of the engineers and officials present during the meetings jokingly remarked on the serious concerns many residents brought up. For example, he says, some of the local farmers expressed concern over the rising waters and its effect on their eggplant plantations. One of the officials supposedly said, “E di magtanom kamo nin mani.” (Well, plant peanuts). When questioned about the effects rising river levels would have on their land property, another official was said to have answered jokingly, “Kudalan nindo an daga nindo.” (Fence off your property). Nierva says that the apparent lack of concern from concerned government agencies are making many residents weary and angry over the project.

In fact, Lupi’s town council recently passed a resolution opposing the construction of the dam, citing the apparent lack of studies, and the absence of a multi-partite monitoring team to assess the planning and implementation of the government project. Nierva adds that aside from these concerns, the town council also raised the issue of inadequate assessment made by the concerned government agencies. In fact, he claims that of the 186 hectares to be permanently inundated, only 2.86 hectares were assessed.

Nierva also dismissed allegations that the opposition to the construction of the dam is a political ploy meant to discredit the administration’s political allies in the 1st district of Camarines Sur. In fact, he says that the people of Lupi and Sipocot, especially those vehemently opposing the dam project are finding difficulty in finding financial support for their cause. Nierva reiterates that the strong opposition is because of people’s initiative and that there are no plans to seek help from provincial officials regarding possible legal actions to stop the project.

Aside from the potential flooding the dam may bring, Nierva says that the higher water levels can damage Philippine National Railways (PNR) railroads near the proposed dam location. With higher river waters come the risk of softer soil and increased risk to the railroad.

Heavy rains can also cause water levels to reach 22 meters, says Nierva. At this level, the total inundated area would be 1,150 hectares, or six times more than the official figure of 186 hectares. There are also plans to expand the project to include the construction of a hydroelectric facility based on a briefing conducted in Libmanan last September, says Nierva.

The dam project critic also belied official government claims that only 298 families would be affected by the construction of the damn. “That’s a lie,” claims Nierva. He also says that a separate statement from the NIA said that only nine families would be directly affected.

In recent weeks, a Comprehensive Development Plan (CPD) was also set up by concerned agencies. Nierva says that the sudden decision to create the plan was due to the incessant clamor for the project’s abolishment. He adds that the CDP is most likely a response to the fierce opposition against the dam project.

According to Nierva, there are plans to consolidate the different scientific findings as well as other materials for use in a legal action against the implementation of the project. However, he adds that the concerned residents would not align themselves with separate legal actions reportedly being prepared by the provincial government. He explains that any legal recourse would only cement the opposition to the dam project and its adverse effect.

Risk of Dam Failure

In a clay model experiment conducted by researchers at the INECAR, the presence of numerous tributaries upstream can lead to severe flooding and loss of property if the construction of the dam pushes through. The official report of Dr. Regis claims that the immense pressure of the water pushing against the dam combined with the unstable and soft riverbanks can have disastrous consequences.

Further research of previous dam failures in Europe and the United States revealed that poor planning and the lack of proper geological studies have resulted in massive loss of property and even lives.

One particular dam failure, that of Vajont dam in Italy, resulted in 2,000 deaths in 1963. Failing to heed warnings that the area is prone to geological upheavals, the sole distributor of electricity in Italy that time proceeded with the construction of the dam, which was finished in 1959. A massive rockslide displaced 50 million cubic meters of water, which resulted in a 250-meter high wave.

Subsequent investigations pointed to hastened and poor planning for the disaster with the company ignoring expert advice in order to meet deadlines for additional public funding.

Another notable dam failure was that of the Malpasset dam in France in 1959. The dam was constructed to provide adequate water and irrigation to the region. Due to lack of additional funding, however, a more comprehensive geological study of the region was never conducted. This resulted in the failure of officials to correctly identify a previously unknown tectonic fault underneath the dam. Heavy rains resulted in immense water pressure on the underlying fault, causing it to heave and lead to the dam’s failure.

An estimate 420 people died in the resulting flash floods with damage to property estimated at $68 million.

INECAR Recommendations

The INECAR’s recommendations point to the adoption of more economical ways to augment the water pumps currently being used in Cabusao and Libmanan.

Dr. Regis, in the report, says that it would be far more practical to access water from the Libmanan-Sipocot River which flows near the target beneficiary towns. Instead of allotting Php1.9 billion, the government can focus on directing water from Tancong Vaca watershed instead of displacing residents from adjacent towns, says the INECAR head.

The government can also acquire additional pumps to augment the existing four units already in place. Operating at the cost of Php7 million annually, the four water pumps can be doubled to help in the irrigation of farmlands in Cabusao and Libmanan.

Even with rising fuel prices and the depreciation of the peso, Dr. Regis estimates that the government will only have to spend Php480 million over the course of 100 years. This would leave some Php1.42 billion for other projects.

CamSur gov, board slam dam plan

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.

Ateneo think thank joins opposition vs Dato Arroyo’s dam

by Jonas Cabiles Soltes, PDI Southern Luzon
Philippine Daily Inquirer, November 14, 2009

NAGA CITY, Philippines—A P1.9-billion irrigation dam that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo helped facilitate for her son, Rep. Dato Arroyo, was an unnecessary expense, according to an institute at a respected school here.

The Institute of Environmental Conservation and Research (Inecar), of the Ateneo de Naga University (AdNU), added its voice to opposition against the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam, being constructed in Barangay Malaguico in Sipocot, Camarines Sur.

In a statement endorsed by AdNU president Fr. Joel E. Tabora and released Tuesday, the Inecar said the dam was unnecessary, as there were alternative ways to irrigate farms in Libmanan and Cabusao that would not displace residents of Sipocot and Lupi and destroy the area’s rich biodiversity.

The two towns, the Inecar statement said, “can source water from the rivers and creeks within their territories.”

Emelina G. Regis, Inecar director, said she was appealing to the sensibility of government agencies who proposed the dam to listen to the concerns of residents in the towns of Lupi and Sipocot.

Regis urged government to rethink the building of the dam and instead consider less costly alternatives.

“It is much easier, less costly, and less dangerous to access water from Libmanan River than to create a dam costing P1.9 billion, considering that Libmanan town, the largest municipality in terms of population in Camarines Sur, has plenty of creeks and springs in its watershed,” she said.

She said a “water harvester” could be used instead, like what farmers in India and China use.

“Small impounding ponds for rainwater collected during the rainy season can be used by farmers to provide water for their farms,” Regis added.

Pumps currently irrigate 2,195 hectares of rice farms in the towns of Libmanan and Cabusao.

“The dam costs P1.9 billion. At P1.9-billion expense, the pumps being used at present could be operated in 271 years, with consideration of other costs such as fuel and machine maintenance,” Regis argued.

She said using the pumps is more economical, and would not displace people.

Regis said the government erred in classifying Lupi and Sipocot towns as areas that would not be inundated when the dam operates.

“When the dam is constructed, 13 villages or about one-third of Lupi’s villages, will be inundated,” she said.

A Statement Opposing the Construction of CASILLI Dam

The Philippines Central Conference
Board of Church and Society
United Methodist Church

Our Social Principle states that “All creation is the Lord’s and we are responsible for the ways in which we use and abuse it.” (Par.160.1. The Natural World, Social Principle)

The construction of the CASILLI Dam started 14 May 2009 at the Polantuna River in Barangay Malaguico and Barangay Manangle, Sipocot, Camarines Sur and is scheduled to be finished in November 2010.

The dam, when it goes into operation and inundates the river, is expected to affect and put under water 186 hectares of land in Lupi, covering nine (9) barangays in Lupi, namely: Bagangan Jr., Barrera Sr., Colacling, Cristo Rey, Lupi Nuevo, Lupi Viejo, San Isidro, and San Pedro. It will also submerge three barrios in Sipocot—Malaguico, Manangle, and Yabu. There is also a possibility that it will affect the Poblacion of Lupi, and five (5) more barrios in Sipocot—Azucena, Impig, North Centro, South Centro and Tara. This would also mean that the 3,125 households of peasant farmers in the 25 barangays of Libmanan, and Cabusao embracing a population of 15,625 will be displaced by the inundation of Polantuna River, which the Dam will cause.

The people in these barangays have expressed their opposition to the project, because (1) to date, there has been no consultation with the residents of the areas that will be affected by the Dam; (2) the Dam will definitely ruin the rice fields and other agricultural lands in the area, and this fact is being concealed from the people; and (3) the whole project will also destroy the greater ecology, and that fact is also being hidden from the public.

The United Methodist Church un its Social Principle declares that…

…technological developments have increased our human numbers, and lengthened and increased our lives. However, these developments have led to regional defoliation, dramatic extinction of species, massive human suffering… (Par.160.1. The Natural World, Social Principles, The United Methodist Church)

We believe that there are other ways or alternatives to generate energy aside from construction of large dam projects like the CASILLI Dam—micro-hydropower, solar powered system, and wind powered system—which are environmental friendly and do not result in massive displacement of people.

…we support and encourage social policies that are directed toward rational and restrained transformation of parts of the nonhuman world into energy for human usage and that deemphasize…energy-producing technologies that endanger the heath, the safety, and even the existence of the present and future human and nonhuman creation. (Par.160.1. Energy Resource Utilization)

We are deeply concerned that even when there is yet no dam, the people of Cabusao, Libmanan, Lupi, and Sipocot are already experiencing flash floods due to heavy rains and every time that storms and typhoons pass by the Bicol Region. With the construction of the dam, there is no guarantee that the promises of the representatives of BRBWMP, NIA, DENR, and other government agencies that the area will stop experiencing flash floods.

The CASILLI Dam Project is a Php1,920,875,197-fast-track project of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her son, Camarines Sur 1st District Congressman Diosdado “Dato” M. Arroyo. The construction of the dam promises more harm that good to the lives of the people as it will dry up river systems, ruin agricultural lands, and destroy forest watershed.

“…the rights and privileges a society bestow upon or withholds from those who comprise it indicate the relative esteem in the which that society holds particular persons and groups of persons. We affirm all persons as equally valuable in the sight of God…We support the basic rights of all persons equal access to…physical protection." (Par.162.III. The Social Community)

The Philippines Central Conference Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist Church strongly support the call of the communities of Cabusao, Sipocot, Lupi and Libmanan against the construction of the dam. We believe that the local concern is also of national interest, and it concerns the Filipino people well, since “ang sakit ng kalingkingan, daman g buong katawan."

Bikol green group urges church to join oppoition to Dato dam

Vox Bikol, Monday, October 26th, 2009

Naga City (22 October)—The PANGATAMAN-BIKOL (Bicol Center for Environmental Protection) threw its support to the people of Lupi who are opposing the P700-M dam which will submerge a large portion of the town.

According to Beverly Ala, executive director of PANGATAMAN-BIKOL, "aside from the fact that the dam will destroy the old town that was founded in 1726, it would also displace thousands of townsfolk and rob them of their heritage and identity."

"But what is worse though," Ala continued, "is that this project was not even consulted with the populace and it was rammed into their throats. Its proponents did not even ask those affected if they really wanted and needed a dam or is it because that it is President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo who imposed it as a source of kickbacks for the district of his son Dato Arroyo in the first district of Camarines Sur."

PANGATAMAN-BIKOL decried that the dam proponents "even had the gall to immediately start the project last May 14" because they seemed to really have "powerful backers to do this" and that putting a stop to the dam project would be an uphill battle.

The environment group says that it is hoping "that the Church will side with the affected people on this issue. We are particularly asking the Bishop of Libmanan, Most Rev. Jose Rojas Jr., D.D., to speak out and defend his flock like what other Bikol bishops did in other environmental issues."

Meanwhile, Ala also belied the statements earlier released by the National Irrigation Authority (NIA) regarding the dam's detrimental effects.

"Firstly, if we are to analyze their arguments saying that unlike the San Roque Dam which is a reservoir dam, they say that the Libmanan-Cabusao Dam (LCD) is just a run-off river dam which is only capable of raising water up to the maximum crest of the dam at 11.3, they are obviously leaving out the fact that they will submerge a large portion of the town. Secondly, water 11.3 meters deep is not like a puddle, it is 37 feet deep and the height of a three storey building," Ala countered.

She added that dam proponents have not considered that "the Bikol region is a disaster prone area and typhoons like the devastating Reming and Milenyo always pass the region."

Hence, a dam such as the one being pushed is "a disaster waiting to happen," Ala added.

PANGATAMAN-BIKOL stated that opposing the dam project "may be an uphill battle but with the unity of the affected people as well as all concerned groups and individuals, this dubious project can be stopped."

Opposition to Dato's dam project mounts

by Sonny Sales
Vox Bikol, Sunday, October 18, 2009

LUPI, CAMARINES SUR (14 October)—OPPOSITION TO THE CURRENT CONSTRUCTION of the P1.9-Billion, Malaguico Dam Project in Barangay Malaguico in Sipocot, Camarines Sur has gathered momentum with local residents in the affected towns of Lupi and Sipocot now expressing deep concern over the displacement of more than 300 families along the riverbanks of the Pulantuna River in Lupi town, even as local government estimates claimed that affected families could reach 500 or an estimated 20,000 individuals.

The dam project is sponsored by First District Representative and Presidential Son, Diosdado "Dato" Arroyo, as part of a promise to farmer-constituents.

Sources at the Sangguniang Bayan of Lupi revealed that currently there is a pending Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between National Irrigation Administration (NIA) Bicol director William Ragodon and Lupi Mayor Raul Matamorosa to conduct a topographical survey at the cost of some P6- Million, to determine low-lying areas, properties, and residences that will be affected by the possible rise in water-level at the up-stream of the dam.

Earlier, NEDA source in Legazpi City said that cost of the topo-survey will be provided by NIA and will be disbursed by the Lupi-LGU to the contracted surveyor.

However, sources here said that local villagers have become jittery that thousands of residents will be displaced and that they are uncertain how much the government will be compensating them for their affected lands once they are displaced.

Meanwhile, an LGU source here said that earlier estimates by NIA of 300 affected families could actually reach 500 with the inclusion of villagers from the Poblacion, Colacling, San Rafael Sur, San Pedro, San Isidro, Barrera Jr. and Tapi, all in Lupi town.

An official here said that during super typhoon "Rosing" in 1995, when the Manangle Railway Bridge collapsed blocking the flow of the Pulantuna River, floods reached the commercial site of Lupi in Colacling, Belcross and the Poblacion.

A government employee here also said that sentiments on the dam construction are now revealed in the website: www.lupicontradam.tk and the www.lupimunicipalityning.com.

Meanwhile in Sipocot, Camarines Sur, Vice-Mayor Rogenor R. Astor bared that concerned sectors had asked the Sangguniang Bayan to conduct a public consultation on October 15 concerning their sentiments on the Malaguico Dam Project.

Reportedly, residents were apprehensive that recent floods in Metro Manila and suburbs will also be a reality in this locality.

Astor said that since limited public hearing were conducted by NIA and BRBWMP on the dam-project, even public officials in Sipocot were kept in the dark on the consequences of the up-stream and down-stream flow of the dam during calamities.

Astor also revealed that engineers of the NIA and BRB are unaware that the water level in the artery-rivers of Bigaan, the Bicol River, and the Pulantuna River, where the dam is being constructed had risen in previous years. Debris from the structures of the old Tara bridge, bombed by rebels in 1987, and of the collapsed Manangle Railway Bridge are still in the river channels, Astor said.

These debris add to the flooding at the river bank localities, Astor explained.

He added that the down-stream flow of the dam will threaten villages of Malubago, South and North Centro, Azucena, and Awayan both in Sipocot and Libmanan towns during typhoons, as was the case during the 1995 flash floods.

Astor also reported that a local rally protesting the dam construction is seeking a Mayor's permit in Sipocot on October 17.

Dam nation: a bloody history of struggle against dams

by Alexander Martin Remolino
Bulatlat.com and Vox Bikol

The construction of dams has always been opposed because of their destructive effects on whole communities. Several anti-dam leaders have been killed as a result. The recent devastation by the dams of Luzon proved that they were right all along.

MANILA—Macli-ing Dulag is a prominent name in the history of environmental and indigenous peoples' rights struggles in the Philippines. He is widely remembered by environmental and indigenous activists for his leadership in the anti-Chico Dam campaign of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

The Chico Dam "would have inundated vast tracts of land in the provinces of Kalinga and Apayao," wrote Miriam Azurin in an article for Ibon Features in 2002.

A leader of the Kalinga tribe of the Cordilleras, Dulag figured prominently in the anti-Chico Dam campaign, forging bodongs (peace pacts) between warring tribes in order to unify them against the World Bank-funded "development" project. Several times, the Marcos government tried to bribe him in exchange for giving up the struggle.

Dulag would lose his life for this. On April 24, 1980, Army soldiers opened fire on his hut; he died on the spot from 10 bullet wounds in the chest and pelvis. In killing him the military hoped to silence opposition to the Chico Dam project.

But Dulag's death only served to "ignite a prairie fire." The news of his murder increased projection of the issue, thereby broadening opposition to the Chico Dam which even reached international levels. The wide opposition to the project forced the Marcos government to abandon it.

Unlike Dulag, Nicanor "Ka Kano" delos Santos - a leader of the Dumagats in Tanay, Rizal - did not lose his life in the thick of an anti-dam struggle. His first foray into activism, however, was as one of the protesters against the Kaliwa-Kanan Dam (or Laiban Dam) project in 1983. The dam's area covers seven villages in Tanay that are home to the Remontado and Dumagat tribes.

At the height of the campaign against the Kaliwa-Kanan Dam project, Delos Santos was elected as secretary-general of the Makabayang Samahan ng Katutubong Dumagat (Maskada) and vice-president of the Bigkis at lakas ng mga Katutubo sa Timog Katagalugan (Balatik). He would be instrumental in the founding of the Kalipunan ng mga Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas (Kamp).

He was shot dead in December 2001 by Army soldiers while bringing food to fellow participants in what was going to be a caravan for the upcoming commemoration of International Human Rights Day in Antipolo City.

The construction of the San Roque Multipurpose Project, which started in 1998, deprived the farmers of San Nicolas, Pangasinan of the Agno River's overflow, which they had been taking advantage of for irrigation. Funded by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and owned by the San Roque Power Corporation, the project required the construction site to be dried up and the river to be diverted. Aside from these, irrigation canals dried up as diggings deepened the river bed.

Jose Doton, who was then already a veteran activist, led the farmers of San Nicolas and other Pangasinan towns in opposing the San Roque Multipurpose Project, explaining that it would eventually inundate all the rice lands along the Agno River.

The construction of what is now known as the San Roque Dam was completed in 2003. Doton fell prey to an extrajudicial killing on May 16 three years later - still in the thick of the campaign against the San Roque Dam, leading a group that was calling on the San Roque Power Corporation to compensate small-scale miners and others displaced by the project.

The recent floods that inundated Northern and Central Luzon - brought by typhoon Pepeng (international name: Parma) but made worse by the release of water from five dams - have proven that Dulag, Delos Santos, and Doton were right all along in opposing the construction of large dams in their respective areas.

The San Roque Dam and the Laiban Dam are just two of the large dams in the Philippines at present. Others include the Magat Dam in Cagayan, the La Mesa Dam in Quezon City, the Angat and Ipo Dams in Bulacan, the Pantabangan Dam in Nueva Ecija, the Matuno Dam in Ifugao, the Binga and Ambuclao Dams in Benguet, the Caliraya Dam in Laguna, the Bayungan Dam in Bohol, the Manangga Dam in Cebu, the Pan-ay River Dam in Panay, and Pulangi V in Bukidnon.

The international outrage sparked by Dulag's murder forced the World Bank and the Marcos regime to abandon not only the Chico Dam, but other large-dam projects in the Cordilleras and elsewhere in the Philippines. However, amid the energy crisis of the early 1990s, then-President Fidel V. Ramos revived the large-dam projects mothballed during the Marcos presidency.

Majority of these large-dam projects are initiated by foreign corporations and their local partners in cooperation with various government agencies. Most of these are funded by the JBIC, as well as the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

According to the International Commission on Large Dams, a large dam is one with a height of 15 meters or more from the foundations, or one with a height of 5-15 meters from the base but holding more than 3 million cubic meters of water.

The 1980s and 1990s saw the frenzied implementation of large-dam projects in countries like Brazil, Chile, China, Guatemala, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand.

These projects, however, were met with intense mass protests. These protest actions inspired the formation of anti-dam groups like the International Rivers Network (IRN).

The snowballing of anti-dam protests led the World Bank and the World Conservation Union (IUCN) to form the World Commission on Dams in May 1998. The WCD's tasks were to study the effects of large dams as development projects and analyze alternative means of developing energy resources; and to set standards and guidelines for planning, designing, assessing, constructing, operating, monitoring, and decommissioning dams.

The WCD studied a number of major dam projects in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and South America.

The WCD found, among other things, that large dams had destructive effects on the environment that are difficult to reverse; and that for the most part, these did not succeed in delivering their promised benefits such as providing for energy needs.

The government has always argued that large dams have to be constructed to provide for the country's energy needs.

In so arguing, the government disregards the environmental and social costs of building and maintaining large dams. It also ignores other sources of energy, and there are several.

There are biomass-powered systems, which use organic materials like animal manure and coconut husks. There are also the micro-hydropower systems, or small systems using energy from moving water, which are characterized by the use of turbines or waterwheels to convert the energy of moving water into mechanical energy, and are especially appropriate for areas with numerous and large rivers. Solar-powered systems, which use photovoltaic cells, and wind-powered systems are also possible sources of energy.

The government has ignored these options and instead chose to build and maintain large dams, claiming that these would bring "development".

But the country's experience with large dams is best summed up in these passages from the People's Declarations Against Large Dams, issued in March 25, 2001 by the various organizations that participated in the National Workshop on Dams held in Baguio City:

"During the second half of the past century, we have seen the government development plan on energy projects arbitrarily use our river systems. Dams were built across the nation to facilitate development but defined only from the perspective of the foreign investors, dam builders, international funding agencies, and the government. Up to now, the Philippine government has been subservient to dictates of foreign monopoly capitalists of liberalization, deregulation and privatization.

"For this, the Filipino masses especially the peasants and the indigenous peoples were damned to pay a dear price.

"Thousands of Filipino families have been physically and economically displaced. Homes and properties have been destroyed and uncompensated. Communities have lost their heritage and their cultural identity. Harassment, militarization and human rights violation have become a common experience for communities directly affected by government development projects. Ecosystems have been destroyed.

"From the laying of the dam cornerstones to the turning of the dam turbines, profits flowed into the pockets of foreign energy corporations and their local partners, international funding agencies and the multi-lateral bureaucracy. Meanwhile, the flow of silt into the productive fields and the destruction of ecosystems, painful experiences of relocation and resettlement, testimonies of broken government promises on compensation, the non-delivery of social services to communities made survival more difficult for the already marginalized sectors of society. The needs of the people were drowned by the greed for profit."