Legislator proposes creation of National Drainage Authority

A lawmaker has proposed the creation of the National Drainage Authority (NDA) that shall study, improve, administer and construct all national drainage systems in the country. 

Rep. Kimi S. Cojuangco of Pangasinan province, author of House Bill 6394, proposed the creation of the NDA, noting the importance of a system solely dedicated for drainage.

The bill hopes to address the perennial problem of flooding caused by the tambak, or filling-up, practice of Filipinos.

Cojuangco said billions, if not trillions, of pesos of private capital end up trapped in the tambak practice as citizens try in vain to cope with flooding problems in establishments and residences.

Cojuangco said that with the increase in number of “filled” areas comes an increase in the number of lots and properties with entrapped water.

“This not (just) makes it difficult to develop the land, it becomes a breeding ground for diseases, such as dengue, which endangers the entire community,” she said.

Cojuangco said there exists a problem with regard to the drainage, which the present structure of government can ill-address.

“One of the biggest problems the country faces, especially in urban areas, is flooding. It is evident from the aftermath of Typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng, and the recent rainfall, that the country’s current drainage system needs to be fixed and updated,” she said.

Cojuangco said the common practice today is to use irrigation channels and canals to serve two functions: irrigation and drainage.

“Irrigation canals need to be at a higher elevation relative to the land, so that they can convey water to flood or ‘irrigate.’ On the other hand, drainage canals need to be at a much lower elevation relative to the land, so that they may effectively carry water away from the land, thereby draining it,” Cojuangco explained.

Cojuangco, a vice chairman of the House Committees on Basic Education and Culture, Energy, and Millennium Development Goals, said that having a proper system in place will definitely be a great help in reducing the risk of floods, potentially minimizing the damage taken and lives lost.

Under the measure to be known as the National Drainage Authority Act, the authority or agency is mandated to investigate all available and possible water resources in the country for the purpose of utilizing the same for drainage and to protect existing water passage right-of-way and implement its acquisition.

The agency shall set the minimum depth and slope standard of drainage systems, so that the water will reach their natural outfalls. It shall plan, design and construct the necessary projects for the next 20 years.

Also, it is directed to collect from users of drainage system fees as may be necessary to finance the continuous operation and reimburse within a certain period not less than 25 years the cost of construction.

The NDA shall be governed by a board of directors headed by the Public Works secretary, and the general manager shall be the chief executive of the agency.

A working capital of P500 million shall be appropriated for the operation of the agency.