ILOILO CITY (PIA) -- The Department of Environment and Natural Resources- Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB), in partnership with the World Wide Fund (WWF) for Nature and local stakeholders, continues to identify crucial steps to ensure water security in the country in the coming years.

Project coordinator of WWF Philippines Elizabeth Lace Viojan, during the meeting led by the DENR-EMB, noted that through the Tigum-Aganan Watershed Water Quality Management Area (WQMA) and “Daloy: Tigum-Aganan Watershed Research Project,” communities will be empowered in attaining water security through informed and climate-resilient water resource use management.

“For the first component, we are solely looking at the flow of the water, its volume, and direction. Another one is we are looking at the human dimension such as the behavior of people on water resources. Lastly, we look at the role of private stakeholders. We designed it like that to have such a combination when it comes to planning from each aspect or sector to capture all the information and co-create those recommendations and solutions,” she added.

Members of the local government unit and government agencies were also informed of the data requirements for the Tigum-Aganan Watershed WQMA pollution load assessment, for them to help in monitoring and generating data to determine pollutant contributions from the point and nonpoint sources.

Likewise, the Tigum-Aganan Watershed WQMA is also meant to assess the assimilative capacity of freshwater bodies and devise strategies for water quality management in the covered area. (AAL/AGP/PIA 6)