UMARANGKADA na sa plenaryo ang panukalang pagbuo sa Department of Water Resources.
Sa kanyang sponsorship speech, idinetalye ni Senador Grace Poe ang Committee Report No. 281 na nagrerekomenda sa agarang pagpasa ng Senate Bill No. 2771 o National Water Resources Management Act na ang layunin ay bigyang solusyon ang deka-dekada nang problema sa water sector.
“The root of our water crisis, however, is actually a crisis in regulation. The problem is not that we don’t have resources, but we do not effectively manage our resources,” ayon kay Poe.
“We have the abundant water supply to get ourselves out of this water crisis: 421 river basins; 59 natural lakes; over 100,000 hectares of freshwater swamps; 20.2 billion cubic meters per year of groundwater potential; and 2,400 millimeters of average rainfall throughout the year,” anya.
Sakabila ng resources na meron ang bansa, iginiit ni Poe na ang kakulungan ng masterplan ang nagiging dahilan kung bakit palpak ang operasyon ng water sector.
“Our pipes have been laid down in a haphazard manner, just like our water sector which has overlapping agencies and fragmented management.
“Without a clear framework to guide us, solutions have been limited to rearranging pipes and patching up leaks,” dagdag pa nito.
Sa panukala, ang Department of Water ang siyang inaasahang magdevelop ng National Water Resources Management Plan na tutukoy sa mga istratehiya para matiyak ang water security ng bansa.
