Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong met with stakeholders on Wednesday, January 10, 2024 to reevaluate and strengthen strategies for groundwater conservation and deep well regulation amid drought forecasts due to the ongoing El Niño phenomenon.
The meeting was attended by the Baguio Water District, Natural Water Resources Board-DENR, City Water Resources Board, City Legal Office, Baguio City Committee Chair on Public Utilities, and the City Environment and Parks Management Office.
Stakeholders sought to craft a strategy that will regulate the proliferation of deep wells as well as come-up with doable measures to prevent over-extraction of groundwater and ensure that resources are protected and conserved for future generations.
One concern discussed was the practice of some private deep well owners who make unlimited pumping of groundwater that aggravates the depletion of the City’s underground aquifers resulting in frequent water shortages.
Likewise, Baguio Water District had raised concern years ago over the proliferation of private deep wells that caused the city’s groundwater supply to decline.
Engr. Marivic Empizo, Assistant Department Head of CEPMO, reported that as of August 2023, about 1,001 deep wells without permits were monitored with the volume of water extracted unregulated.
Presently, there are only 215 deep well operations with valid permits in the city.
Empizo emphasized the urgency of the situation, considering that the City’s water resources are under significant strain due to uncontrolled water extraction from numerous illegal deep wells.
Representatives from the meeting are calling for comprehensive assessments before the installation of new deep wells and the regular monitoring of existing ones to prevent over-extraction. ** Danny Killip and Jessa Mardy Samidan