Pushed into action by the devastating effects of the recent monster flood that inundated Northern Mindanao, Pres. Noynoy Aquino has directed the Department of Budget and Management to release P150 million for the installation of 1,000 automatic water level sensors nationwide to aid forecasters in tracking river water levels and potential floods.
Budget secretary Florencio Abad said the funding issued to the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) will be used in the fabrication and installation of 1,000 automatic water level sensors to be placed in 18 river basins throughout the country.
He added that the government will prioritize the installation of the water sensors in the Cagayan de Oro River (two sensors upstream, 1 downstream), Iponan River, Cagayan de Oro-Iligan, Misamis Oriental (one sensor), and Iligan City (one sensor upstream, one sensor downstream). The installation of all units will begin in 2012.
The DOST reported that since the 1980s, only four rivers in the country have been installed with water level sensors. The released funding will significantly improve the government river monitoring system nationwide to aid in forecasting potential floods.
In the last quarter of the year, the DBM has released P150 million for the purchase of three Doppler radars to boost national weather monitoring, accurate forecasting, and early flood warning by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).
The Doppler radars will be installed in Antique, Palawan, and the Zamboanga Peninsula. Dopplers that will be set up in the western parts of the country are expected to complete the country’s real-time coverage of weather and climate trends.
Meanwhile, a member of the Senate has urged telecommunications providers to draw up disaster management plans and ensure that the ICT infrastructure they utilize are resilient against natural calamities.
Sen. Edgardo Angara, chair of the Senate Committee on Science and Technology, cited a recent survey from real estate firm Regus showing nearly half of Philippine-based respondents do not have disaster recovery plans in place for their ICT systems.
“Real-time communication is an asset during large-scale calamities, such as Typhoon Sendong. We enhance our abilities in managing disasters when we make sure that in the face of any disruption, our telecommunications services are resilient and quick to go back online,” said Angara.
The Regus survey found that 48 percent of respondents in the Philippines do not have an IT system recovery plan to ensure that systems would be running within 24 hours of a disaster. The result is three points higher than the global average of 45 percent.
“If some of our telcos have yet to incorporate disaster resilience into their operations, then now is not the time for them to take a wait-and-see attitude. The extensive devastation caused by recent floods only tells us that we can never be too prepared for natural disasters,” stressed Angara, who is also chair of the Congressional Commission on Science, Technology and Engineering (Comste).
The lawmaker explained that such endeavors should not be undertaken by the telcos alone. “Various sectors of society ought to work together, especially in cultivating the knowledge necessary not just in responding to disasters, but also in reducing our risk and vulnerabilities.”
Comste has been pushing for the deployment of an innovation cluster — a public-private partnership among government, the academe and the private sector that will conduct research into the development of technologies useful in Disaster Science and Management.
Angara noted that around P60 million has been allocated in 2012 budget for the creation of such a cluster.
Budget secretary Florencio Abad said the funding issued to the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) will be used in the fabrication and installation of 1,000 automatic water level sensors to be placed in 18 river basins throughout the country.
He added that the government will prioritize the installation of the water sensors in the Cagayan de Oro River (two sensors upstream, 1 downstream), Iponan River, Cagayan de Oro-Iligan, Misamis Oriental (one sensor), and Iligan City (one sensor upstream, one sensor downstream). The installation of all units will begin in 2012.
The DOST reported that since the 1980s, only four rivers in the country have been installed with water level sensors. The released funding will significantly improve the government river monitoring system nationwide to aid in forecasting potential floods.
In the last quarter of the year, the DBM has released P150 million for the purchase of three Doppler radars to boost national weather monitoring, accurate forecasting, and early flood warning by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa).
The Doppler radars will be installed in Antique, Palawan, and the Zamboanga Peninsula. Dopplers that will be set up in the western parts of the country are expected to complete the country’s real-time coverage of weather and climate trends.
Meanwhile, a member of the Senate has urged telecommunications providers to draw up disaster management plans and ensure that the ICT infrastructure they utilize are resilient against natural calamities.
Sen. Edgardo Angara, chair of the Senate Committee on Science and Technology, cited a recent survey from real estate firm Regus showing nearly half of Philippine-based respondents do not have disaster recovery plans in place for their ICT systems.
“Real-time communication is an asset during large-scale calamities, such as Typhoon Sendong. We enhance our abilities in managing disasters when we make sure that in the face of any disruption, our telecommunications services are resilient and quick to go back online,” said Angara.
The Regus survey found that 48 percent of respondents in the Philippines do not have an IT system recovery plan to ensure that systems would be running within 24 hours of a disaster. The result is three points higher than the global average of 45 percent.
“If some of our telcos have yet to incorporate disaster resilience into their operations, then now is not the time for them to take a wait-and-see attitude. The extensive devastation caused by recent floods only tells us that we can never be too prepared for natural disasters,” stressed Angara, who is also chair of the Congressional Commission on Science, Technology and Engineering (Comste).
The lawmaker explained that such endeavors should not be undertaken by the telcos alone. “Various sectors of society ought to work together, especially in cultivating the knowledge necessary not just in responding to disasters, but also in reducing our risk and vulnerabilities.”
Comste has been pushing for the deployment of an innovation cluster — a public-private partnership among government, the academe and the private sector that will conduct research into the development of technologies useful in Disaster Science and Management.
Angara noted that around P60 million has been allocated in 2012 budget for the creation of such a cluster.
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