Environment committee bats for institutionalization of Agusan-Cugman Cluster of Watershed Management Council

COUNCILOR Roger Abaday, chair of the City Council Committee on Environment, favorably endorsed the passage of an ordinance which will institutionalize the Agusan-Cugman Cluster of Watershed Management Council.

Once enacted, the ordinance will authorize City Mayor Rolando A. Uy to enter into and sign a memorandum of agreement which will commission the management council to harmonize sectoral plans and initiatives intended for the development and sustainability of the Agusan-Cugman Cluster of Watersheds.

Photo grabbed from Councilor Yvy Emano's FB Page.

A representative from Department of Environment and Natural Resources, during the meeting, detailed that the council was initially formed in 2015 through the Integrated Natural Resources and Environment Management (INREM) project of DENR. However, without a legal framework to create the council, it still lacked formal authority.

In 2021, the DENR issued guidelines for its creation, thus the re-establishment of the body in 2023 with 46 member agencies and offices. It consists National Government Agencies (NGAs), Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations (GOCCs), Local Government Units (LGUs), Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), security and religious groups, the academe, business sector, and people’s organizations.

Councilor Aga, who attended the meeting, asked about the implication of institutionalizing the governing body.

The management body, according to Abaday, will become the legal personality that will be responsible in conserving, developing, and protecting the watershed. “Walay makasulod, walay ma-introduce diha nga development kung dili muagi sa ilaha. Pananglitan diha sa Malasag, nay magbuhat og subdivision, muagi na sa ila. Studyohan nila atong area nga dili maguba…  ma-preserve, ma-develop to make it sustainable,” he added.

The Agusan-Cugman Cluster of Watersheds, comprising five micro-watersheds (Bigaan, Agusan, Cugman, Alae, and Umalag), is located between two major river basins of Cagayan de Oro and Tagoloan. Its headwaters originate from Mt. Kitanglad Range Natural Park, an ASEAN Heritage Park in Region 10.

The matter was referred to the Committee on Laws and Rules for appropriate action.