The city government calls for the immediate formalization and mobilization of the Multipartite Monitoring Team (MMT) to keep track of the full blast implementation Dawel-Pantal-Lucao Diversion Road and Bridge Project.
 

The move is to oversee construction phases of the said environmental critical project (ECP) noting that Dagupan City, as a flood prone-storm surge vulnerable area, is characterized as a large environmental critical area (ECA).
 
Rudy Fernandez, CMO’s executive assistant, said the city led the creation of an MMT, the first ever in Dagupan City, by virtue of a memorandum of agreement signed on March of 2004.
 
Fernandez revealed that the city government initiated the creation of an MMT due to the alleged failure of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)-Region I and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)-Region I to do so.
 

DAGAT executive director Teddy Villamil, Jr. said the MMT has never been formalized due to the absence of duly approved Work and Financial Plan, Monitoring Modules and the proponent’s commitment to allocate a dedicated Environmental Monitoring Fund despite a MOA that was earlier signed. 
 

Proponents of the project are DPWH R1, to cover the road component, and the Project Management Office -Urgent Bridge Construction Project for Rural Development (PMO-UBCPRD) of DPWH to cover the bridge component.
 

“The city was long clamoring for an empowered MMT. It took so long before its creation which is a year after the ECC was issued to the proponent,” Villamil declared that the law calls for the creation of an MMT by the DPWH-proponent and DENR, supposedly 60 days after issuance of the ECC. 
 

“One of our major concerns here is the provision of job opportunities to the affected residents to the project implementation,” Fernandez pointed out.     
 

The MMT was supposed to sign an amended version of the MOA on January 31, but the proponents said they were not ready to sign the MOA because of some cited concerns.
 

The MMT has a task to monitor the project’s compliance to the ECC conditions and also monitor the actual filling operations on the river. 
 

DAGAT (Dagupan Estuarine Aquaculture Fisheries Growth and Technology Linkages Inc.), an NGO environmental advocate in the city revealed some violations committed by the ongoing construction of the Pantal bridge, hence the organization called the attention of MMT to take immediate actions.
 

Based on the presentation of DAGAT to the Tanggol Kalikasan and DENR, there was a massive land filling along Pantal River, particularly Pantal west, to accommodate stock piling work for the construction of Pantal bridge.
 

Rudy Villamil (DVM), founding president of DAGAT, doubted if the tons of earth material can be effectively retrieved. He said the earth materials will surely be washed adding to silt load and destruction of marine ecosystem and of the riverine.  
 

“The resulting constriction and narrowing of Pantal River due to massive land filling poses imminent danger, flush flood and mud flow that can result to enhanced flash flooding,” Villamil added.      
 

Fernandez noted the imperative need to mobilize the MMT in order to come up with a monitoring report on: the update of the project implementation; status of LGU proposed alternate road exit; reported problem on aquatic pollution and the perceived problem on enhanced flooding due to river constriction; and issues on local and priority employment to those affected by the project. (Sunshine D. Robles)