While there is a general recognition by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) that there is indeed a need to adopt the watershed as the relevant planning unit for the management of the countrys water resources, the full adoption of this approach within DENR has yet to be institutionalized.
A study conducted by a team of researchers from the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), UP System and De La Salle University (DLSU) attributed this problem to the absence of a watershed management program within the DENR and the lack of appropriate funding support from the national government.
Not unless this funding appropriation is made possible to boost the capacity and capability at the DENR at all levels, will the operationalization of this concept on a bigger scale be realized, said Dr. Herminia Francisco, professor at the College of Economics and Management, UP Los Baos and member of the study team.
The study team likewise noted that even the recently signed Philippine Clean Water Act does not specifically require the use of the watershed approach in managing pollution in water bodies. Nevertheless, it hopes that the watershed approach to water resources management may be more explicitly mentioned in the Acts Implementing Rules and Regulations.
A study conducted by a team of researchers from the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), UP System and De La Salle University (DLSU) attributed this problem to the absence of a watershed management program within the DENR and the lack of appropriate funding support from the national government.
Not unless this funding appropriation is made possible to boost the capacity and capability at the DENR at all levels, will the operationalization of this concept on a bigger scale be realized, said Dr. Herminia Francisco, professor at the College of Economics and Management, UP Los Baos and member of the study team.
The study team likewise noted that even the recently signed Philippine Clean Water Act does not specifically require the use of the watershed approach in managing pollution in water bodies. Nevertheless, it hopes that the watershed approach to water resources management may be more explicitly mentioned in the Acts Implementing Rules and Regulations.
