P150M earmarked for Chico megadike feasibility study

TABUK CITY, Kalinga:

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) central office earmarked P150 million for the required feasibility study for the Chico River megadike project and the Eastern Kalinga growth center that are seen as economic drivers in the Cordillera region.

Rep. Allen Jesse C. Mangaoang said the feasibility study for the region’s growth center has been bid out by the DPWH central office to ascertain the economic potentials of the area and the amount of government funds needed for the realization of this flagship project spearheaded by the Regional Development Council (RDC) in the Cordillera.

He noted the one-year feasibility study is geared towards identifying the possible tourism areas, business center, airport, government center, forest reservations, among others, where the proposed P5.5-billion mega dike will serve as the major access to the growth center.

Earlier, the DPWH identified the 18-kilometer long and 30-meter wide megadike as one of the agency’s flagship projects in the region with an initial project cost of P5.5 billion to be funded through a multi-year allotment in the next several years.

Mangaoang, however, admitted that because of the prevailing crisis triggered by the dreaded coronavirus disease pandemic, the proposed completion of the mega dike before 2022 is highly unlikely.

According to him, one of the major goals of the megadike project is to address the perennial flooding in the lower villages of the city and nearby Pinukpuk town and prevent the damages inflicted by the annual floods to the lucrative agricultural industry of the said localities.

Moreover, the megadike will also contribute in the efforts of the national and local governments to significantly reduce public funds reportedly wasted because of the annual dredging activities along the stretch of the region’s major river system.