• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Negros Occidental Fifth District Rep. Emilio Bernardino Yulo III has expressed support to the call for a comprehensive and transparent investigation on the root causes of landslides at Mt. Kanlaon and the flashfloods in the downstream communities.
Yulo, whose congressional district was affected by massive floods and landslides triggered by Typhoon Tino, admitted that he is curious on how the devastation happened.
Areas that experienced widespread flooding are La Castellana, Moises Padilla, Hinigaran, Isabela, Binalbagan, and Himamaylan City.
Yulo said he is ready to join, participate, and extend assistance in the conduct of the probe.
In an open letter, LC Outdoors Mountaineering Club and allied organizations as well as concerned residents of La Castellana and neighboring towns and cities, called for an immediate and decisive action, noting also the potential roles of illegal logging, quarrying operations, and any issuance of permit within the protected area.
“Recent events have demonstrated the severe vulnerability of our communities,” they said.
The groups pointed out “the accumulation of volcanic sediments on the slopes, uprooted trees, stones combined with heavy rainfall, and dangerous mudflows that sweep down the rivers, destroying property, farmland and posing an extreme risk to human life”.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) attributed the recent landslides and flashfloods in central Negros to 10 hours of incessant rains prior to the landfall of Typhoon Tino last month.
DENR-Negros Island Region director Charlie Fabre said the rains loosened the compactness of soil, bringing down trees and boulders to communities on the slope of Mt. Kanlaon and affecting almost 800,000 people.
Fabre noted that although the forest cover of Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park has significantly increased, a large portion of the land cover is made up of crops, grassland, and open barren areas that cannot hold large amount of torrential rains.
He said ground assessment teams found no indications that the trees carried down by severe flooding were illegally cut. | GB
