There is an urgent need to build a dam in Marikina City to prevent devastating floods when typhoons strike, Public Works Secretary Mark Villar said.
A billion-peso plan for a multi-purpose dam in the upstream of the Marikina-Montalban River Basin is being proposed by Villar as one of the long-term solution so that residents will not experience the catastrophe brought by recent typhoons again.
“That really attacks the source of the issue, of the problem, which is the water coming down from the mountains. When it rains, all of a sudden, we have a flood of water coming into Marikina River,” Villar said.
Villar said the dam would enable communities to withstand strong typhoons, even those that could cause a rare “100-year flood” — a massive flood that only has a 1% chance of taking place each year.
“So of course, if you want to do this, it costs a lot of money. But then again, ito investment naman ito (this is an investment),” Villar added.
The proposal for the construction of Marikina Dam is now with the National Economic and Development Authority. It is among the major flood control projects worth a total of ₱138 billion in the Department of Public Works and Highways’ plans.
