The Philippines: MMDA to Start Waterway Cleanup Project ‘Estero Blitz’

MMDA to Start Waterway Cleanup Project 'Estero Blitz'

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) formally ended its “Linis Palengke” program as the agency starts preparation for its extensive waterway cleanup called ‘Estero Blitz.’

MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino said the agency will be resuming its estero cleanup early April so they will have sufficient time to declog major creeks and other waterways in Metro Manila before the onset of rainy season in June.

We will start our estero cleanup on the first week of April,” Tolentino said after leading the last market cleanup activity at the Pasig Mega Public Market in San Nicolas, Pasig City, together with Pasig City Mayor Maribel Eusebio.

The MMDA’s ‘Estero Blitz’, now on its fourth edition, involves the daily declogging and dredging of esteros, creeks, and drainages in flood-prone areas in Metro Manila with the objective of preventing floods during the rainy season. It was first launched in August 2011.

The Linis Palengke program, on the other hand, was launched last October and has covered a total of 100,879 square meters of public market land areas.

[mappress]

Press Release, March 28, 2014