The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) started its dredging activities for the Tullahan-Tinajeros River System.

“Cleaning the Tullahan River will make Manila Bay easier [ease the efforts of the government and volunteers in reviving the beauty of Manila Bay],” said Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu at the Navotas Centennial Park during the ceremonial handover of the dredging map between the DENR and San Miguel Corporation (SMC).

He added that the operation will remove sediments that degrade the water quality of the waterway.

The dredging will cover the 5.25-kilometer part of the river system which stretches from Barangay Catmon in Malabon City to Barangay Bagumbayan South in Navotas City.

SMC President Ramon Ang said the equipment used for dredging were acquired from Japan complete with the necessary parts, adding that the company will complete and sustain the project.

“With this project na gagawin nating suporta kay DENR Secretary Cimatu, makakaasa po kayo na hindi lang one-time po, gagawin natin to pati maintenance yearly (we guarantee you that this is not just a one-time thing, we will maintain it yearly),” Ang said.

The DENR and SMC signed a memorandum of agreement for the Adopt-an-Estero program in 2019, a priority initiative of the DENR and a key strategy to address the continuing mandamus of the Supreme Court to clean up Manila Bay.

Meanwhile, Malabon City Mayor Antolin Oreta III said that it should not be the SMC alone who will take on the responsibility of cleaning the river system, but all the cities where the river passes as well.

The 36.4-kilometer river system begins at the La Mesa Dam in Quezon City. It goes through Valenzuela, Novaliches, Malabon, and drains into the Manila Bay at Centennial Park in Navotas. (PNA)