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SU to present findings on Ocoy River flooding

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After a year and a half of research, Silliman University presents its research findings and key recommendations to the local government units of Dumaguete, Sibulan, and Valencia on Oct. 14 at the Silliman Assembly Hall.

The project, supported by the Oscar M. Lopez Center for Climate Change Adaptation & Disaster Risk-Management Foundation Inc., involved researchers from multiple fields with the ultimate goal of making households and businesses along the Ocoy River more resilient to floods.

Ocoy River, which passes through Valencia, Dumaguete, and Sibulan, has a history of catastrophic floods that have wreaked havoc on homes, businesses, and farms, and resulted in deaths, injuries, and loss of property and livelihood. Despite the dangers, people continue to build homes along the riverbanks.

“Climate change will increase the likelihood of destructive typhoons and the frequency of heavy downpours, which for the communities along Ocoy River would mean more exposure to dangerous floods,” explained project leader Dr. Jorge Emmanuel of the SU Institute of Environmental & Marine Sciences.

To address this problem, the project pulled together multiple disciplines–sociology/anthropology, chemistry/biology, geophysical science/engineering, and computer studies.

“The project demonstrates the value of an inter-disciplinary approach to tackling urgent problems,” said sociologist Dr. Enrique Oracion, SU director of Research, and one of the project team leaders.

Among the tools developed by Dr. Oracion’s team were social survey questionnaires to understand the perceptions and “sense of place” of residents and businesses.

The concept of sense of place provides insight into why people remain in a place despite its perceived high risk and can guide policymakers on climate adaptive resettlement.

Another team headed by biologist Dr. Robert Guino-o helped train communities on sampling of Ocoy River water.

During the dry season, his group found that the dumping of human and animal waste into the river resulted in high levels of coliform bacteria that could spread during floods. His team facilitated the training of community leaders in First Aid/Basic Life Support and recommended a program of training for at-risk communities to increase the chances of survival of people injured by floods.

Dr. Emmanuel’s team developed models of the Ocoy River Basin using open-source software. The models were used to determine areas of high flood risk.

They reviewed the latest engineering design recommendations for flood control structures, and suggested a reach-by-reach assessment of the river to determine the most appropriate hard control measures.

They also recommended non-structural measures such as increased forest protection, reforestation, bioengineering approaches (such as the planting of bamboo and vetiver grass along river banks), and the possible use of flood retention basins upstream.

The task of compiling and visualizing the data fell on the team of Dr. Dave Marcial, dean of Computer Studies. His group developed the web portal and database, and provided training to the LGUs on the use of free software to access visualized data and flood hazard maps.

“We are introducing a new application called Siren which was developed by our students. It has an information board, early warning, and incident reporting system,” announced Dr. Marcia.

This new web and mobile app could be part of an enhanced early warning system for the Province.

The project worked closely with the Disaster Risk-Reduction and -Management officers and held numerous consultations with residents, businesses, barangay officials, and other stakeholders to come up with a set of recommendations. The draft recommendations were presented and discussed earlier with city and municipal officials, Sanggunian members, as well as provincial officials.

Silliman President Dr. Betty Cernol-McCann will formally present the written recommendations to the Mayors of Dumaguete, Sibulan, and Valencia who have been invited to the event.

“The University is committed to supporting the efforts of Dumaguete, Sibulan, and Valencia in disaster risk-reduction and climate change adaptation,” said Dr. McCann.

“We hope they will adopt the recommendations, and benefit from the capacity-building activities provided by the project team, as we work together to make our communities more resilient to climate change.” (SU/OIP)

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