By Benjamin Cuaresma
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is moving to build a major detention basin beneath the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) cloverleaf in Quezon City as part of a broader effort to contain flooding while turning excess rainwater into a potential source of household water.
Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon said the proposed facility, to be developed in coordination with NLEX Corp. and the Quezon City government, could be at least half the size of the detention basin at Burgos Circle in Bonifacio Global City.
“We can build a large detention basin in that area, maybe at least half of the detention basin in BGC (Bonifacio Global City), in Burgos Circle,” Dizon said during an inspection Thursday of the heavily silted Balong Bato Creek and drainage structures in Balintawak.
Dizon said the DPWH would work with Quezon City in designing the facility, while NLEX Corp. has committed to helping construct it.
The project is being eyed not only as a flood-control measure but also as part of a government push to capture and reuse rainwater instead of allowing it to flow directly into waterways and worsen flooding.
“The important thing here is if we get the right of way with the help of QC, we might be able to do it hopefully by next rainy season, the large detention basin,” Dizon said.
He said the basin could help address flooding along EDSA and extend its benefits toward the G. Araneta area, where heavy rains frequently disrupt traffic and movement.
Dizon also revealed that President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. had directed the DPWH to coordinate all detention-basin projects with Metro Manila’s water concessionaires, Manila Water and Maynilad.
Under the plan, rainwater collected in the basins could potentially be recovered and brought to water-treatment facilities instead of being discharged into esteros.
“I just want to make an announcement, PBBM (President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.) has ordered us to coordinate all the detention basins that we will build with our water concessionaires, Manila Water and Maynilad, so that the water that we will store will not be wasted and dumped into the esteros,” Dizon said.
“If possible, we will ask them to help us collect the water that we will store to use for potable water, so that it will be redirected to the treatment plants of Maynilad and Manila Water,” he added.
Dizon said the approach would allow the government to tackle two pressing problems at once—flooding and water security.
“We will be able to help our countrymen with flooding and at the same time, we will still be able to use the water for household use,” he said, adding that the President’s directive would allow planning and execution of the projects to move forward.
Aside from the proposed detention basin, the DPWH is also looking to increase the size of drainage inlets in the Balintawak area to improve the flow of stormwater during intense rainfall.
Dizon said the larger inlets are intended to help ease flooding that routinely triggers severe traffic congestion and lengthy travel delays.
Meanwhile, Dizon and Bataan 2nd District Rep. Abet Garcia met with Asian Development Bank (ADB) Director General Nianshan Zhang and other ADB officials to discuss major infrastructure projects aimed at strengthening flood defenses and improving transportation links.
Among the projects discussed were the Manila Bay Integrated Flood Control Defense and Coastal Expressway Project and the Sorsogon-Samar Bridge Project.
Dizon described the two projects as vital long-term infrastructure initiatives, particularly the Sorsogon-Samar bridge, which is expected to strengthen the connection between Luzon and the Visayas and facilitate faster movement of people, goods and trade.
The developments form part of the Marcos administration’s broader infrastructure strategy, with the President directing the DPWH to work with multilateral development institutions to accelerate projects intended to improve public services and the daily lives of Filipinos.
For the DPWH, however, the proposed NLEX detention basin represents a more immediate intervention: holding back floodwaters before they overwhelm the drainage system, while potentially converting the captured rainwater into a resource instead of letting it disappear into already strained waterways.
ia/xf
