Watershed Project for Aklan

Plans are underway for developing a watershed area in Aklan to assure the province’ long-term water needs.
Derlito Rico, Environment Management Specialist of the DENR, Kalibo, Aklan said the watershed project will be in Madalag town covering the barangays of Galicia, Ma. Cristina, San Jose and Pang-itan.
Together with the Metro Kalibo Water District, the DENR envisions that the watershed project will ensure the continuous supply of clean water for use of Aklanons.
Rico said trees to be planted in the area would include forest and fruit-bearing ones.
Fruit trees are included so that residents in the area who would also be tasked to develop and secure the project would not resort to tree-cutting to sell as firewood and charcoal but instead harvest fruits for their extra income.
The move of DENR-Aklan to develop the province’ watershed project coincided with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s recent appointment of the agency’s Secretary Angelo Reyes as arbitrator of the National Water Resources Board (NWRB), the government office tasked to regulate the use and distribution of one of the country’s precious resources – water.
PGMA said her appointment of Reyes was made to bring greater effectivity in the NWRB’s mandate of distributing water.
The President said that Reyes’ arbitrary powers as DENR head will fall in the resource regulation mandate of the NWRB which concerns "water for drinking, water for power generation and water for agriculture."
Here in Aklan, besides the development of a watershed area, the province has already created and institutionalized the Aklan Rivers Development Council to revitialized and sustain efforts to preserve and develop the Aklan Rivers System.
The province is also pushing for a 29.1 megawatts hydropower plant at Timbaban, Madalag to supply low-cost electricity to the province and other neighboring provinces in Panay Island. /MPmailto:madyaas_pen@yahoo.com