Suits mulled vs San Roque dam operators over floods

(Update 2 - 12:48 a.m. Oct. 13) Legal suits are looming over the operators of San Roque dam for allegedly failing to properly warn residents along the Agno river basin in northern Luzon that last week's release of water during the height of typhoon “Pepeng" would cause massive flooding. Governor Amado Espino Jr. of Pangasinan, one of the most affected provinces by the flooding, on Monday said he and other organizations are considering a move to file charges against the dam officials. “I am asking the legal officials here to study because there is some neglect on their [dam officials] part," Gov. Espino told GMANews.TV in an interview. The National Power Corporation (Napocor) owns the San Roque dam and spillway, while the San Roque Power Corporation (SRPC) owns and operates the power generating facilities. According to the website of the San Roque Multipurpose Project www.sanroquedam.ph, the SRPC is owned by the Marubeni Corp. (75 percent) and Kansai Electric Power Co. Ltd. (25 percent). As described in the website, Napocor's Flood Forecasting and Warning System for Dam Operations (FFWSDO) and the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) "dictate the volume of water to be released by specifying the appropriate spillway gate openings to SRPC" based on weather and river data. AGHAM, an organization advocating "science for the people," also joined the outcry, saying the operators of San Roque dam should be held accountable for the disaster that struck northern Luzon provinces. "The operators and owner of the dams should be held accountable. They have allowed the water to reach dangerously high levels and not acted on it sooner. Instead of releasing the waters earlier, gradually and in lesser volumes, they did it suddenly without adequate warning to the communities," said Dr. Giovanni Tapang, AGHAM chairperson. San Roque dam is the biggest of the three dams along Agno river, and is designed to produce energy, supply water and control flood. In Manila, Sen. Francis Escudero said he is now coordinating with local government officials in northern Luzon for the possible filing of a class suit against the operators of dams there, including the San Roque dam.
“Inaalam at kinukuha na namin ang mga dokumento mula sa mga naapektuhang lugar, partikular na pinag-aaralan ay yung nag-ooperate ng dam. Hinahanap at hahanapin namin ang pananagutan kaugnay sa nangyaring ito kung meron man," he said. (We are seeking and gathering documents from the affected areas particularly with regards the dam operators. We will look into their liability, if there’s any.) Recent reports from the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) showed that the floods affected 38 towns and three cities in northern Luzon, rendering thousands of people homeless and causing millions worth of damage to agriculture and infrastructure. Of the affected areas, 23 towns and three cities are in Pangasinan, most of which are in the Agno river basin located downstream from the San Roque dam and reservoir. Nothing wrong Napocor however maintained that it followed the protocol when it released water from San Roque dam last Thursday. "It is their right (to file charges). In my view, we followed the protocol," said Alex Palada, division manager of the flood forecasting and warning system for dam operations of Napocor. He said the San Roque dam is being managed by the San Roque Power Corporation under Japanese companies Marubeni and Kansai. An official from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) meanwhile admitted that the release of the water aggravated the flooding in northern Luzon but added that the dam is not solely to be blamed. “It increased the flood waters, yes, but [North Luzon] to be flooded is a foregone conclusion. Evidence showed the amount of precipitation was just too much," said DOST Undersecretary Graciano Yumul in a press briefing in Malacañang. Yumul said even if the dams did not release any water, northern and central Luzon would have been flooded anyway because Pepeng dumped rains of from 200 to 675 millimeters - or three times the definition of “heavy rainfall" that is 180 millimeters - in 24 hours. He said the heavy rainfall proved too much for the watersheds to absorb, and resulted in the collapse of dikes and in the release of excess water from dams. Yumul added said the water from the flooded areas of San Fabian, Mangaldan and Dagupan City in Pangasinan did not come from the dams but from the adjacent mountains in Benguet. “With or without the dams, there would have been a flood. There was no way the mountains could absorb all that water. It's a combination of several sources and reasons," he said. Legally liable In a press statement, Escudero said under the law, operators are legally liable for any negligence on their part. In the case of San Roque dam, he said the operators failed to adequately warn residents of the floods that may be caused by the release of massive volumes of water during Pepeng’s onslaught. He said dam operators could be sued for deaths or injuries incurred by their disregard for safety. “In extreme cases, they can even be criminally liable. Any complainant may also add reckless imprudence to the class action suit," he added. Escudero said lawyers from Manila and the affected provinces who believe that dam operators are liable for the incident would assist in the crafting of the class suit. He said representatives of the residents in the area would be named as complainants. Protocol The senator said he wants to know the protocol that dam operators follow when releasing water. He said operators of San Roque dam should explain why they waited for the water to reach the maximum level of 290 meters above sea level before releasing it. “Bakit kailangang maghintay na umabot sa 288 meters above sea level bago sila nagpakawala ng tubig? Dapat 220 to 240 pa lamang nagpakawala na nang unti-unti kaysa mabilisan at malakasan," Escudero said. (Why did they wait for the water to reach the 288 meter level when they could have gradually released it at 220 to 240 level?) He said the capacity of a dike is 4,000 cubic meters per second, but the dam released water at 5,000 cubic meters per second. “Klarong masisira ang mga dike, klarong bibigay, klarong magiging dahilan ng pagbaha (It is clear that the dikes would be breached, collapse, and cause the flooding)," he said. The dikes in Rosales and Villasis gave away during the height of Pepeng. Napocor's Palada denied that there was an abrupt release of water from the San Roque dam. He said they first opened the gate of the spillway on Tuesday October 6 at 12 midnight upon learning of the forecast that Pepeng may hit Pangasinan. The water level then was 268.25 meters. They opened another gate 12 hours later. Both gates were opened at 1 meter each, he said. Around 4 in the afternoon of Wednesday October 7, the two gates were further opened to 1.5 meters each. The gates were left open until morning. On Thursday October 8, the dam operator opened two more gates at 1 meter. Around 10 in the morning, the two of the gates were closed while the two others were opened at 1 meter each. Around 11 in the evening the same day, another gate was opened at 1 meter. “We open gates at progression," Palada said, adding that one of the gates is still open as of Monday night. It was not clear from Palada's account that by Friday October 9 at 12 noon, all six gates had been opened and by afternoon had been releasing nearly 6,000 cubic meters per second, a sudden jump from the previous day's figures, based on PAGASA's Dam Status bulletins. - GMANews.TV