Clean_WaterSecurityIloilo_31Jan2013.pdf

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and

Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-

Aganan Watershed

Prepared for USAID/Philippines under the Water II IQC

Climate Change Resilient Development Task

January 31, 2013

IQC Contract No. AID-EPP-I-00-04-00024

Task Order No. AID-OAA-TO-11-00040

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed iii

Table of Contents

ACRONYMS iii

1. Introduction

1.1 Background

1.2 Case Study Objectives

1.3 Assessment Methodology

1.4 Roadmap

2. The Iloilo Context

2.1 Development Objectives and the Economy

2.2 Iloilo Climate

2.3 Management of Water Resources in Metro Iloilo

2.3.1 Too Little Water in Metro Iloilo 6

2.3.2 Degraded Water in Metro Iloilo 8

2.3.3 Too Much Water in Metro Iloilo 9

3. Stresses on Water Security

3.1 Non-climate stressors

3.2 Climate Stressors

4. Water Governance

5. Principles of Adaptation for Iloilo

6. Options for Improving Water Security

6.1 Resource Evaluation

A. Develop Long-term Monitoring Program 20

B. Evaluate and Enhance Groundwater Data 21

6.2 Improve Knowledge Management

A. Enhance Monitoring Network for Supply, Quality, and Flooding 23

B. Information Clearinghouse 25

C. Develop Capacity for Information-based Management Decisions 27

6.3 Augmentation of Water Supplies

A. Community-based Options 28

B. MIWD Options 33

6.4 Improve Water Quality

A. Point of Use Source Water Treatment 35

B. Improving Compliance and Enforcement Capacity to Achieve Water Quality

Goals 37

C. Analyze Metro Iloilo Options for Addressing Wastewater 38

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed iv

6.5 Reduce Flood Risks

A. Enhance Land Use Planning 39

B. Investigate Improvement of Early Warning Systems 40

C. Analyze Capacity of Flood Management System to Cope with Future Floods42

6.6 Reform Sector Governance

A. Improve Sector Accountability and Coordination 44

B Civil Society Capacity Building 45

C. Analyze Options for Public/Private Partnerships 47

6.7 Demonstrations of Cross-cutting Solutions

A. Lessons Learned at SM Mall Applicable to Commercial Development of

Old Airport 48

7. Summary of Adaptation Options

References 50

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed iii

ACRONYMS

ARG Automated rain gauges

AWIS Annotated Water Integrity Scan

CBOs Community-based organizations

CDI USAID/Philippines City Development Initiative

CIMS Chesapeake Information Management System

CLTS Community-led total sanitation

CLUPs Comprehensive Land Use Plans

DENR Department of Environment and Natural Resources

DPWH Department of Public Works and Highways

E3 USAID Bureau for Economic Growth, Education, and the Environment

ENSO El Niño Southern Oscillation

GCC Global Climate Change

GIS Geographic Information System

HEC-RAS US Army Corps of Engineers Hydrologic Engineering Center River Analysis

System

IBWQMA Iloilo-Batiano Water Quality Management Area

INECE International Network for Environmental Compliance and Enforcement

IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre

IRDC Iloilo River Development Council

IRRs Implementing rules and regulations

IT Information technology

JICA Japan International Cooperation Agency lps Liters per second

LFEWS Local Flood Early Warning Systems

LGUs Local Government Units

LINAW Local Initiative for Affordable Wastewater Treatment Program

LWUA Local Water Utilities Administration

MGB Mines and Geoscience Bureau

MIWD Metro Iloilo Water District

NEDA National Economic and Development Authority

NGOs Nongovernmental organizations

NIA National Irrigation Association

NRW Non-revenue water

NWRB National Water Resources Board

NWRMO National Water Resources Management Office

OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed iv

PAGASA Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration

PFG Partnership for Growth

PPIAF World Bank’s Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility

PPPs Public-private partnerships

PREDICT Philippine Real-time Data Acquisition and Interpretation for Climate Related

Tragedy Prevention and Mitigation

PSA Philippine Sanitation Alliance

TAP Transparency, Accountability and Participation

TAW Tigum-Aganan Watershed

TAWMB Tigum-Aganan Watershed Management Board

TAWQMA Tigum-Aganan Water Quality Management Area

TI Transparency International

USAID U.S. Agency for International Development

USGS United States Geological Survey

WASH Water, sanitation and hygiene

WDM Water demand management

WIN Water Integrity Network

WQMAs Water Quality Management Areas

WWT Wastewater treatment

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 1

1. Introduction

1.1 Background

The USAID Bureau for Economic

Growth, Education, and the

Environment (E3) Office of

Global Climate Change (GCC) worked with the USAID

Philippines Mission to select the

City of Iloilo and the surrounding

Tigum-Aganan Watershed

(TAW) as the focus of this water security assessment (see Figure

1). Iloilo was selected because the

TAW faces significant climate vulnerabilities, and the City of

Iloilo is one of three cities participating in the

USAID/Philippines City

Development Initiative (CDI), which is part of the Partnership for Growth (PFG) initiative.

1.2 Case Study

Objectives

The objectives of this field work were to: (1) identify current and future water security and climate risks to Iloilo’s economic growth;

(2) engage local partners in the assessment, laying the foundation to build capacity and ownership;

and (3) identify and analyze a set of options for addressing these risks. An additional objective of this case study was to pilot USAID’s climate resilient development framework and the water sector annex (2013a, b) in order to provide feedback on those documents and their approaches.

As part of this assessment, the technical team approached water security using a development and climate change perspective. While many of the issues faced by Iloilo involve basic development challenges, climate variability is already having major impacts on water security and climate change will most likely have important implications for the long-term sustainability of development projects designed to ensure greater water security. The study considers these issues together.

Figure 1. Map of Panay Island. Provinces are outlined in red island-wide, and municipalities are outlined in grey in Iloilo

Provice only. Iloilo City is colored deep red and the Metro Iloilo area (municipalities in the TAW and the Iloilo watershed) is shaded grey.

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 2

1.3 Assessment Methodology

Field work was conducted between July 9 and July 19, 2012 by a technical team consisting of four technical experts and two USAID representatives. The technical experts included a water resources engineer, a water governance lawyer, and two climate change adaptation and policy specialists. One USAID representative came from the Philippines Mission and the other from the

Washington, DC E3/GCC. The technical team read available literature on the region before the assignment; gathered climate, socioeconomic, and other relevant data from knowledgeable sources both within and outside the Philippines; consulted with stakeholders at the national, regional, provincial, municipal, barangay, and household levels; and conducted site visits to water infrastructure projects, reforestation projects, private and government housing developments, and commercial developments. This report is a summary of the research team’s assessment of Iloilo water security issues followed by a number of adaptation options identified by the research team in consultation with stakeholders that merit consideration for near-term implementation.

1.4 Roadmap

The remainder of this case study report will provide a synthesis of the issues identified in the field. Section 2 will address the Iloilo context to provide background for the reader. Section 3 will address both non-climate and climate stressors on Iloilo water resources, including the anticipated impacts of climate change. Section 4 will focus on water governance issues, which play a particularly important role in water security in the Philippines, Metro Iloilo, and the TAW.

Section 5 lays out some principles of adaptation specific to the metro Iloilo area. And finally, Section 6 presents 22 specific actions proposed by the research team to improve water security in

Metro Iloilo.

2. The Iloilo Context

Iloilo City is the highly urbanized capital of Iloilo Province in the Western Visayas region, on the southeast portion of Panay Island (see Figure 2). A coastal city, it lies on a flat alluvial plain, with a total coastline length of 21.3 km and a total land area of 78.34 square kilometers. Ninety percent of the city’s land mass has an elevation of 2.637 meters above mean sea level. There are four bodies of water traversing the city: the Iloilo, Batiano, and Jaro Rivers and Dungon Creek.

Iloilo River is an estuary while Jaro River is fed by its tributary rivers, Aganan and Tigum(Iloilo

City Socio-Economic Profile, 2004).

Box 1: What is water security?

USAID is committed to “creating a water secure world in which every society enjoys access to an acceptable quantity and quality of water to meet human, livelihood, production, and ecosystem needs” (http://transition.usaid.gov/our_work/cross-cutting_programs/water/). This report includes flooding risk as an additional aspect of water security.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estuary

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 3

Iloilo City is an independent city chartered under the national government, so the provincial government of Iloilo has no authority over the city. Nevertheless, similar water security issues affect both Iloilo City and Iloilo Province, which has prompted coordinated efforts in past years across the city, neighboring municipalities (also known as Local

Government Units;

LGUs), and the provincial government.

According to the 2007 national census, Iloilo

Province had 2,110,588 residents, of which

418,710 (19.8%) lived in Iloilo City. In this report, we will refer to

Iloilo City and the surrounding municipalities

(Alimodian, Cabatuan, Maasin, Oton, Pavia, San Miguel, and Santa

Barbara), which lie within the TAW and

Iloilo watersheds, as the

Metro Iloilo area.1 The

Metro Iloilo area has

707,771 residents, or 33.5% of the provincial population.

The Tigum-Aganan Watershed’s natural topography ranges from mountains to flood plains and coast, covering a total drainage area of 434 square kilometers. Land use is generally described as mountain environment or upland forest for the municipalities of Maasin, Alimodian, and Leon;

lowland area for Cabatuan, Santa Barbara, San Miguel, Pavia, and Oton; and coastal/sea environment for Iloilo City and Oton. (Salas, Tigum Aganan Watershed Case Study, no year) Its two major rivers are the Tigum and Aganan Rivers, which combine as the Jaro River before draining into the ocean. The Tigum River is the primary source for 73% of the total water supplied by the Metro Iloilo Water District (MIWD) to its franchise area; while the Aganan

River is the major source of irrigation water supplied by the National Irrigation Administration to farmers in the TAW.

This water security assessment initially focused on the TAW (also known as the Jaro watershed) because of its importance to Iloilo City and Iloilo Province (see Figure 3). In the course of

1. Note that the TAW also includes small sections of the municipalities of Janiuay, Leon, and New Lucena.

These municipalities are not included in the “Metro Iloilo” area illustrated in Figure 2 because the majority of each of these municipalities lies outside the hydrologic boundary of the TAW.

Figure 2. Depiction of the Tigum, Aganan, Jaro, and Iloilo River Basins overlayed on municipalities. Note that the Tigum and Aganan Rivers flow together to form the Jaro River.

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 4 research for this case study, it became clear that the TAW cannot be considered in isolation, but must be considered in the context of both the Iloilo

River watershed and the

Jalaur River watershed (see

Figures 2 and 3). The Iloilo

River watershed covers much of Iloilo City and the neighboring municipalities of Oton and Pavia, and consequently has major relevance for water security in terms of flooding and groundwater, even though surface water from the

Iloilo River is not a significant source of water supply. Furthermore, a major dam project is planned for the Jalaur River, with planned inter-basin transfers to the TAW, where some of this surface water is expected to supply the Metro Iloilo area. Consequently, this report maintains a focus on the TAW, but also pulls in details about the Iloilo and Jalaur watersheds as necessary.

2.1 Development Objectives and the Economy

Municipal, provincial, and regional stakeholders expressed a consistent set of development objectives for the Metro Iloilo area, including promoting tourism, spurring commercial development, and expanding local agriculture. These objectives permeated many other local initiatives. For example, the First Philippine International River Summit, held on May 30 through June 1, 2012, proposed a set of actions consistent with these overall development objectives, including prioritizing water resources and river restoration projects under public-private partnerships (PPPs) and developing rivers as eco-tourism and biodiversity sites

(Highlights Summit Report, 2012). The Cities Development Initiative objectives of USAID

Philippines are consistent with these identified objectives as well

(http://philippines.usaid.gov/content/partnership-growth-cities-development-initiative)

Initial efforts are under way to promote Iloilo as a tourism and retirement destination. A waterfront walkway has been partially developed along the Iloilo River in downtown Iloilo City, with plans to expand that waterfront. The Iloilo and Guimaras2 wharves are slated for upgrades and redevelopment to make them more tourist-friendly, and local tourism businesses have worked through the Iloilo Tourism Council to develop a training and licensing program to

2. Guimaras is a neighboring municipality and small island just a few kilometers offshore from downtown

Iloilo. Boat ferries take people back and forth from the two destinations regularly.

Figure 3. Depiction of the Tigum-Aganan (Jaro), Iloilo, and

Jalaur River Basins. The Jalaur River Basin, located to the north and east of the TAW is largely relevant to the current assessment because of a planned dam and inter-basin water transfers that would add water to the MIWD system via the TAW.

http://philippines.usaid.gov/content/partnership-growth-cities-development-initiative

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 5 enhance historical and cultural knowledge among tourism industry workers. The first direct international flights from

Hong Kong and Singapore to the Iloilo airport were slated to begin in fall 2012, providing easy transportation routes to

Iloilo for countries such as

China with a growing middle class and growing interest in tourism. The

Metro Iloilo-Guimaras

Economic Development Council3 was recently awarded a P10 million grant from the Local

Government Support Program to promote sustainable and development-oriented tourism programs. Plans also exist to promote Iloilo as a retirement community, and initial development to support this objective has already begun.

Commercial economic activity appears to be expanding in Iloilo as well, as evidenced by the recently opened SM Mall. Work has also begun redeveloping the old Iloilo airport into the Iloilo

Business Park (http://www.exploreiloilo.com/megaworlds-iloilo-business-park-project-overview). The Iloilo Business Park is in initial construction stages, despite some concern expressed by the investors over both reliability and cost of water and electricity supplies. The business park is expected to cost some P18 billion, to create 200,000 square meters of commercial space, and to support around 35,000 jobs.

Furthermore, expanding agricultural production is a key objective of the recently approved Jalaur dam project (http://www.pia.gov.ph/news/index.php?article=931345532874). Although some of this water is meant to provide potable water for the Metro Iloilo area, the majority of water will be used to irrigate some 31,840 hectares of currently rain fed agricultural land or fallow land

(Jalaur River Multi-purpose Project Stage II, 2011). Although this land is currently envisioned as a rice agriculture area to provide food security locally, a number of stakeholders understood that expanding agriculture to grow higher value crops was an important aspect of improving the local economy.

In summary, significant political will and private and government investment has led to initial progress on tourism, commercial development, and agricultural productivity objectives. Almost all stakeholders interviewed identified inadequate water supply and high energy costs as the two greatest constraints that will retard progress toward the priority development objectives of Metro

Iloilo and the rural areas of the TAW. The consensus among the vast majority of community members was that inadequate water supply is the number one constraint and priority.

3. The Council was formed in August 2006 by presidential executive order, but it was an evolution of the

Metro Iloilo Development Council (established February 2001) and the Guimaras-Iloilo City Alliance

(established May 2005).

Iloilo City as seen approaching the wharf from Guimaras.

http://www.exploreiloilo.com/megaworlds-iloilo-business-park-project-overview http://www.exploreiloilo.com/megaworlds-iloilo-business-park-project-overview http://www.pia.gov.ph/news/index.php?article=931345532874

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 6

2.2 Iloilo Climate

The Philippines has a tropical, humid, maritime climate that experiences monsoonal rain patterns. It is characterized by relatively high temperature, high humidity, and abundant rainfall.

Latitude is an insignificant factor in the variation of temperature across the Philippines, so national temperature data provides good insight into the characteristics of Iloilo. Mean annual average temperature for the Philippines is 26.6°C. The coolest month is January at 25.5°C and the warmest is May at 28.3°C. Due to these high temperatures and the maritime environment, the

Philippines has a high relative humidity ranging from 71% in March and 85% in September

(http://kidlat.pagasa.dost.gov.ph/cab/climate.htm). The climate of Iloilo Province is relatively dry from December to June and relatively wet from July to November. There is, however, no distinct wet and dry season in the Iloilo-Capiz border – along the Madia-as mountain range. Annual average rainfall is 2,063.20 mm (PPDO 2011). Typhoons are perhaps the most significant aspect of climate in the Philippines and Iloilo Province. A significant portion of annual rainfall each year is related to typhoons which originate in the region of the Marianas and Caroline Islands of the Pacific Ocean and follow a northwesterly direction, generally passing north of Mindanao and striking the Visayas and Luzon, including Panay Island and Iloilo Province. As discussed below in Section 3, typhoons have caused very destructive flooding. Other climate impacts such as drought are also significant problems for the region. Climate change, also discussed in Section 3, is projected to increase temperatures, intense precipitation events, and introduce new challenges such as sea level rise.

2.3 Management of Water Resources in Metro Iloilo

The Metro Iloilo area already faces significant exposure and vulnerability to water – too much water (i.e., flooding), too little water (i.e., droughts), and degraded water (i.e., low water quality).

These vulnerabilities are affected by climate variability and are expected to be made worse by climate change. Each of these issues is described in more detail in the sections below.

2.3.1 Too Little Water in Metro Iloilo

Despite significant rainfall, potable water is scarce in Metro Iloilo because of inadequate infrastructure, surface water contamination, and under-exploitation of available water sources.

The Metro Iloilo Water District 4 supplies water to approximately 20–40% of the population.5 To compensate for this low coverage, nearly all residents rely on shallow wells6 dug on their

4. The Metro Iloilo Water District was organized by the government in 1978 and is the official purveyor of water in Iloilo City and seven surrounding municipalities. For a sense of scale, MIWD employed 217 personnel in 2008. They control a reservoir, dam, filtration, and water treatment facilities in Maasin and Santa

Barbara municipalities; 10 deep wells in Pavia, Oton, and San Miguel; over 200 km of transmission pipes from

Maasin to Santa Barbara; and over 250 km of distribution pipes in their service areas. 73% of MIWD water volume comes from the Tigum River and 27% from wells. The population of the franchise area, including 8 municipalities and Iloilo City, was 721,258 in 2008, with 31,000 connections (Hechanova, 2009).

5. It is unclear how this figure is measured, but it appears from multiple interviews that most of the people served by MIWD are only served for a few hours each day, and many are technically served but do not receive water at all. Other service problems diagnosed by the World Bank include low water pressure, low water quality, and intermittent supply.

6. These wells were reported and observed to be in the range of 10–20 feet deep.

http://kidlat.pagasa.dost.gov.ph/cab/climate.htm

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 7 individual property or shared wells dug at their housing development. While these shallow wells have been a reliable supply of water in the past, this water was reported by local residents and government officials to be low quality in many areas, especially due to salinization and poor separation of water supply and sanitation facilities. These shallow wells have been abandoned where water quality has been most severely compromised, although most remain in active use despite poor water quality. Even where the water remains usable, it is typically used only for non-potable purposes such as washing.

Bulk water providers are a second source of water supply. Bulk providers typically are private operations that apply for a permit and then dig one or more deep wells7 in the Metro Iloilo area and then sell that water, at a higher cost than MIWD rates, especially to hotels, hospitals, commercial operations such as the local malls, and other large facilities. These bulk water supply operators pump water out of the deep wells into cisterns, fill up trucks that carry 10–20 tons (or 10k–20k liters), and then pump that water into storage tanks at private facilities.

The research team observed a modest amount of rainwater harvesting in the

Metro Iloilo area, especially at government-sponsored housing developments, on private homes, and some pilot projects at local schools (see picture). However, the scale of these projects is generally small, the storage tanks are often inadequate to provide a reliable supply, the captured water is untreated, many people interviewed expressed concern about contamination from animals living on rooftops, and many large roofs and other surfaces are not being used to capture rainwater.

In addition to the domestic use discussed above, a large amount of water is used for irrigation in the Metro Iloilo area, but especially in the rural areas in the TAW. Water shortages are a significant issue for irrigation as well. It was reported that in the Aganan River Irrigators

Association,8 only 50% of the service area receives water during the second cropping season. In order to address water shortages, the irrigation association has had to prevent third cropping season planting in upstream areas to ensure that downstream irrigation association members have enough water for their first cropping season. Water is generally not provided for irrigation during the summer (or dry season) months of March, April, and May, when insufficient rainfall prevents

7. These wells were reported to be in the range of 120 feet deep.

8. Irrigation water in TAW is controlled by three entities – the National Irrigation Association (NIA), the

Federation of Irrigators Associations (the Federation), and individual irrigation associations (12 in the TAW), such as the Aganan River Irrigators Association. These entities together control the allocation and distribution of water, determine the cropping calendar, maintain irrigation canals, provide training and capacity building for Irrigation Association members, and have even begun looking into more entrepreneurial activities such as microfinancing, provision of post-harvest facilities, plowing services, storage facilities, etc.

A small rainwater harvesting system on a housing development community shelter.

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 8 adequate water deliveries for irrigation. There are no water storage reservoirs along the Tigum or

Aganan Rivers.

2.3.2 Degraded Water in Metro Iloilo

Water quality is a major concern in Metro Iloilo. MIWD water is treated at a modern, centralized water treatment facility prior to distribution to MIWD customers – the water is desilted, processed, and chlorinated prior to distribution.9 Nevertheless, many interviewees complained that MIWD water that comes out of the tap is either clearly dirty in color or has an unpleasant smell. Consequently, the entire community – even MIWD customers – largely relies on bottled water for drinking.10 The cost of bottled water is significant and is paid by virtually the entire community, even the very poor.11

MIWD water, bulk water, and well water are all used primarily for washing, for sanitation, and for other non-potable uses due to water quality concerns. Even bulk water supplied to commercial outfits is generally used only for non-potable purposes, or it is treated on site prior to use for potable purposes.

Surface source water suffers from significant siltation problems, primarily due to the massive deforestation of the watershed. Some progress has been made in recent years to reforest the watershed, particularly at the Maasin Forest Reserve and through a National Greening Program, in which

Metro Iloilo LGUs have community tree planting days. Local foresters, however, suggested that residents in the highlands routinely cut down trees to create charcoal for sustenance cooking fires, preventing significant progress on reforestation. Regardless, siltation remains a significant problem for MIWD and irrigators in the TAW.

Groundwater wells, particularly shallow wells, are reportedly suffering from salination, reportedly due to saltwater intrusion in the near-ocean areas of Metro Iloilo. Many interviewees expressed that this problem had become much worse over the course of their lifetimes. These wells are also often co-located with sanitation facilities and washing stations, which also is likely to cause contamination in shallow wells (see picture ). Bulk water providers using deep wells and rainwater harvesting systems do not appear to have significant water quality issues. However, the water is not treated, and local residents reported that this water is generally considered unfit for

9. This water treatment facility was constructed in 2000 as part of a loan package from the Asian Development

Bank and has a supply capacity of 37,000 cubic meters per day.

10. Extensive use of bottled water is prevalent in other areas in the Philippines such as metro Manila.

11. For example, one Iloilo City resident shared that they pay an average of P600/mo for bottled water for their family. For the 45% of Western Visayan families that live on less than P100,000/yr this translates into a minimum of 7.2% of annual family income.

Co-location of washing station and shallow well.

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 9 consumptive use. Note that while depletion of aquifers may be the most important cause of saltwater intrusion, sea level rise is probably also contributing to this situation.

There is very little wastewater treatment in metro Iloilo. It was reported that most hotels, hospitals, commercial buildings, and government buildings process wastewater on site. However, most residential development relies on septic systems, which were reported to be neglected and largely unmaintained. This may contribute to the low water quality in the shallow wells dug by residents on their individual property or at shared housing development wells. Site visits confirmed the co-location of shallow wells and sanitation or washing facilities. According to the

Iloilo River Development Master Plan, the condition of Iloilo River is deteriorating due to domestic and industrial effluents and siltation (IBC 2004). There is currently no plan for developing a sewerage system in Iloilo.

2.3.3 Too Much Water in Metro Iloilo

Metro Iloilo has high exposure and sensitivity to flooding because it is located on a flat alluvial plain below the Madia-as mountain range. Three major rivers – the Iloilo, Tigum, and

Aganan – drain through Metro

Iloilo, which (at least in the lowland and coastal areas) was largely built on filled marshlands. This creates a situation of extremely high exposure to floods, especially from large rainfall events and typhoons. Upland areas of the

TAW have suffered from landslides due to heavy precipitation events in conjunction with poor land use practices, such as widespread deforestation.

Typhoon Frank is the most severe recent example of flooding in Iloilo. Heavy rainfall from the typhoon brought an estimated 195–234M m of runoff water through Iloilo City on June 16–23, 2008. In the Maasin Watershed alone, 2.2 million m of soil was eroded in landslides that still cause siltation problems, and some 70,760 trees were uprooted and washed downstream. This caused significant damages to infrastructure, agricultural production, and businesses estimated at

P1.3 billion (US$28 million; Mabilog, 2010).

This flooding hazard has been partially addressed through the Iloilo Flood Control Project funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA; see picture). The completed Phase

1 of this project included floodway improvements to the Tigum, Aganan, and Jaro Rivers and construction of the Jaro Floodway to divert floodwaters prior to them reaching Iloilo City. Future improvements to the Jaro River and Dungon Creek are planned for Phase 2 of this project, which has not yet been funded (see Figure 4). Reforestation initiatives have the potential to address

JICA funded Phase 1 flood control project.

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 10 upland landslides, but it is not clear how effective reforestation has been outside of the Maasin

Forest Reserve.

Figure 4. Diagram of the Iloilo Flood Control Project.

3. Stresses on Water Security

Metro Iloilo and the TAW suffer from a number of stresses that affect water security. Several major stressors are identified below and discussed in more detail. Following the organization of

Climate Change and Water: An Annex to the USAID Climate Resilient Development Framework

(USAID 2013b), we discuss climate and non-climate stressors separately below.

3.1 Non-climate stressors

Low service levels for municipal water supply. Metro Iloilo has an abundance of water, but very low service levels for residential, commercial, or industrial use (e.g., Yap, 2011). It was reported that a common problem among water districts is the dual challenge of shrinking supplies while demand is increasing. Most water districts rely on wells, which were reported to be down approximately 40% in water yield, according to one expert. The evidence for inadequate water supplies is extensive, including the widespread use of shallow wells for residential water; the need for hotels, hospitals, malls, and other large facilities to contract with private bulk water providers to ensure an adequate supply; and MIWD’s reported coverage of between 20% and 40% of the population in the MIWD service area. While the planned Jalaur

Dam project is expected to provide additional water supply for MIWD, there is not a clear plan for treatment or transmission of this water.

Low service levels for agricultural water supply. Despite ample rainfall and streamflow, insufficient water is made available for productive agricultural use. Irrigation Associations are

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 11 forced to implement spatial and temporal restrictions on providing irrigation water to active agriculture operations. Of the many Irrigation Associations in the TAW, several reported restricting water use and agricultural productivity to ensure downstream users some water supply. Water is also generally not provided during the dry season months of March, April, and

May, when natural flows are not sufficient to support agriculture.

Poor distribution infrastructure. MIWD water is treated at a modern water treatment facility constructed in 2000, but the water that comes out of the tap is reported as muddy and not safe for potable use. MIWD reports that some 38% of water is reported as non-revenue according to various reports. These facts imply significant problems with MIWD’s distribution infrastructure. Although

MIWD spent P887 million (US19.1 million) from 1987 to 2008 to improve facilities, add additional pipelines, and rehabilitate some wells, the World Bank indicated that this level of investment was insufficient to improve services to a satisfactory level.

Inadequate tariffs to support infrastructure investments. MIWD’s current water tariff is insufficient to support existing services, reduce non-revenue water, or fund improvements to the water system according to the World

Bank. The current MIWD tariff is

P15.90/m , compared to a Panay island-wide average tariff of approximately P25/m

. Although there appears to be a desire by MIWD management to increase the tariff to fund service improvements, all tariff increases must be approved by the Local Water Utilities Administration

(LWUA), a national government agency. It was reported that MIWD has not received a definitive response back from LWUA about its request for a tariff increase.

No sewerage system. There is no sewerage system in the Metro Iloilo area. It was reported that individual households often use septic systems. Hotels, hospitals, and large commercial establishments often have on-site wastewater treatment facilities and even reuse some of that water. But large populations of “informal settlers” that have taken up residence on undeveloped land in the Metro Iloilo area, often close to the river, dispose of their wastes directly into the river. The Iloilo River receives untreated sewage from 120 of 180 barangays in Iloilo City and 50 additional barangays outside the city limits. There are currently no plans to provide a sewerage system, and existing septic systems were reported to be poorly maintained.

Inadequate information and/or information distribution regarding water resources. People involved in local government decisions about water resources cited a poor understanding of the watershed and water resources in the area as a major impediment to informed decision-making.

Iloilo has received five automated rain gauges (ARG) and a number of automated water level sensors as part of its weather and flood monitoring programs (http://loqal.ph/nation-and-world/2012/02/16/iloilo-gets-hi-tech-flood-monitoring-equipment-2/ See Figure 5). It is our

MIWD distribution system in a wealthy Iloilo City neighborhood.

http://loqal.ph/nation-and-world/2012/02/16/iloilo-gets-hi-tech-flood-monitoring-equipment-2/ http://loqal.ph/nation-and-world/2012/02/16/iloilo-gets-hi-tech-flood-monitoring-equipment-2/

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 12 understanding that there are two water level monitoring sensors currently in operation. One is located at the Imelda Bridge, Cabatuan, Iloilo and the other is on the Jaro Bridge, Pavia, Iloilo

(http://embedded.asti.dost.gov.ph/projects/water-level-monitoring-system/).

However, reports such as the SWECO (1997) and Castalia (2009) have extensively studied local water resources. This points to another aspect of this problem – namely, the failure to manage data in a way that makes it available to local water resources decision-makers.

Poor water governance. Water is subjected to a highly fragmented system of authority and control. National, regional, and local entities all play a role in water governance, but in many circumstances it appeared that local level control of the resource was hindered by conflicting authorities and mandates at the national level, lack of enforcement capability, local and national level politics, and opaque decision-making processes. In most cases, critical stakeholders at the watershed level, including a variety of councils and boards appointed by local government officials to address specific issues, such as regional development or watershed-level planning councils, face the challenges of effective coordination and limited ability to affect decisions

Figure 5: Typical Water Level Monitoring Station

(http://embedded.asti.dost.gov.ph/projects/water-level-monitoring-system/).

http://embedded.asti.dost.gov.ph/projects/water-level-monitoring-system/ http://embedded.asti.dost.gov.ph/projects/water-level-monitoring-system/

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 13 made about water. See Section 4 below for a more detailed description of water governance issues in Iloilo.

High population growth and migration. In Iloilo Province (Iloilo City excluded) 44.5% of the population is 19 years of age or younger and there is a 1.13% population growth rate between

2000–2007 (PPDO, 2011). Iloilo City experienced a growth rate of 1.86% over that same period

(NSO, 2007) likely due to in-migration from neighboring municipalities in the province. High population growth will put added pressure on an already inadequate water supply system by increasing the number of people who should be served by the water resource system, and put a greater number of people at risk of floods over time.

High unemployment and poverty. In Iloilo Province (Iloilo City excluded) 26.8% of the population is in poverty (19.9% of families).12 Unemployment rates for the age group 15 years and older available for the Western Visayas indicate approximately 6–10% unemployment depending on the season, although labor force participation rates hover around 64%, indicating a significant population not participating in the labor force (PPDO, 2011). According to the

National Statistics Office, some 45% of families earn income under P99,999 (US2,153) per year and 85% of families earn income under P249,999 (US5,385) in the Western Visayas (Region

VI). This lack of economic resources contributes to a system whereby water supply and treatment strategies are underfunded, and adaptation capacity is generally low due to resource constraints.

3.2 Climate Stressors

Warming temperatures. Observations across the Philippines indicate that minimum night time temperatures have increased by 1.0°C and maximum daytime temperatures have increased by

0.36°C over the last 60 years (1951-2009). An analysis of extreme daily temperatures indicates an increase in the number of hot days and a decrease in the number of cool nights. PAGASA projects that average temperatures in Iloilo will rise just over 1°C by about 2025 and about 2 to

2.5°C by 2050. Continued warming can have significant effects on water supply as evapotranspiration will increase significantly. Warmer temperatures also lead to increased water demands for crops and domestic use. Warmer air temperatures also lead to warmer water temperatures, which can reduce water quality by lowering dissolved oxygen content, increasing algal blooms, and other impacts that can harm freshwater fisheries as well as making water treatment more expensive.

Drought and increased dry season. Water security is affected by the dry season in March, April, and May, when agricultural and residential water deliveries are often restricted. By increasing temperatures, climate change can make that period drier which can reduce soil moisture and water supplies in that critical season and increase water demand for crops and domestic uses (PAGASA, 2011). A potential lengthening of the dry season would exacerbate these impacts. Low streamflow can have adverse consequences for water quality and environmental flows that support freshwater fisheries. ENSO also has significant impacts on water security on the Iloilo area. It was reported that during the 2010 El Niño event, the Iloilo area went eight months without rain, with severe consequences for the ability of water districts to

12. The annual per capita poverty threshold is PHP 16,584 (USD 357).

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 14 provide water. According to the World Bank, MIWD operations during a severe El Niño were reduced to covering only approximately 5% of the population in the service area.

Precipitation changes. There is too much variability to identify any statistically significant trends in precipitation in the historic record in the region (PAGASA, 2011). To be sure, the effects of climate change on precipitation are complex, but the summer months (March to May) are projected to become drier and the rest of the year is projected to have somewhat wetter, but mixed results (PAGASA, 2011). Precipitation intensity is also projected to generally increase

(Tebaldi et al., 2006) with one rough rule of thumb being that intense precipitation could increase 7% for each 1°C increase in temperature (Trenberth et al., 2003). More intense precipitation will increase flows during floods, thus increasing the risk of flood damage. The climate models project rainfall increases in the monsoon months of June, July, and August as well as the September, October, and November season (PAGASA, 2011). More intense rainstorms, particularly very extreme storms, will result in larger amounts of precipitation falling in short timespans. Nevertheless, typhoons are anticipated to have higher winds and more precipitation. In addition, sea level rise will most likely cause storm surges from typhoons to be higher and thereby inundate a larger area. In the past three years, the Philippines have notably experienced weather events with record-breaking rainfall that caused massive flooding, claimed thousands of lives, and caused billions of pesos in damages. This includes Tropical Storm Ondoy

(international name “Ketsana”) in September 2009, Tropical Storm Sendong (“Washi”) in

December 2011, and an eight-day period of intense rains during the August 2012 monsoon season.

Typhoons. Typhoons are quite common in the Iloilo area and cause extensive flooding and subsequent risks to water security. Typhoons cause most of their damage from intense rainfall that concentrates in runoff in the Tigum, Aganan, and Iloilo Rivers, all of which pass through

Metro Iloilo and Iloilo City. One likely outcome of climate change is that typhoons will become more intense. There is too much variability, however, to identify any statistically significant trends in tropical cyclone occurrence or intensity in the historic record (PAGASA, 2011).

Anecdotally, Typhoon Frank, in 2008, destroyed the main transmission line that moves water from Maasin to Metro Iloilo. According to the Castalia report (2009), before Frank, MIWD supplied 450 liters per sec (lps) to 26% of the district’s service area population, and the water quality was compliant. After Frank, MIWD supplied 146 lps to 5% of the district’s service area population, and the water quality was not compliant (Hechanova, 2009). This water shortage lasted for several months. Water quality, public health, and all aspects of water security were effected by Typhoon Frank. In its trends analysis of tropical cyclone occurrence within the

Philippine Area of Responsibility, Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical

Services Administration (PAGASA) observed that there is a “very slight increase in the number of tropical cyclones with maximum sustained winds of greater than 150kph and above” during El

Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) periods (DOST-PAGASA, 2011). PAGASA also noted a slight increase of tropical cyclone crossing over the Visayas from 1971-2000 compared with the

1951-1980 and 1960-1990 periods.

Sea level rise. Sea level rise has already risen by 0.2 meters over the last century and is projected to accelerate substantially (Solomon et al., 2007). The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate

Change (IPCC) projected that sea level rise will be roughly 0.2 to 0.6 meters by 2100 (Solomon et al., 2007). However the IPCC study did not fully account for the potential of rapid melting of major ice sheets such as Greenland and Antarctica (Oppenheimer et al. 2007). A recently

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 15 released study by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences estimates that on average, global sea levels will increase by about 20 to 50 cm by 2050 and 50 to 140 cm by 2100 over 1990 levels

(NRC, 2012). Sea level rise will increase salinity of groundwater and could inundate low-lying facilities or put them at greater risk of inundation from storm surges.

4. Water Governance

One of the most critical issues facing the Philippine water sector is the lack of an integrated and coordinated governance framework. Currently, more than 20 government policies and legal instruments grant authority over some aspect of water management to more than 30 institutions at the federal, regional, and local levels (Salas 2011). This regulatory fragmentation was cited by both national and local stakeholders as a key impediment to achieving water security in Metro

Iloilo and the TAW. The status quo of water governance in Iloilo can be characterized as a large number of institutional actors with overlapping and sometimes unclear mandates and authorities

(see Figure 6).

At the national level, the Water Code of 1976 remains the framework legislation governing water allocation and management, prescribing a system for permitting allowable, beneficial uses of both surface and groundwater throughout the country. The

Water Code created the

National Water Resources

Board (NWRB) to “coordinate and integrate activities related to water resources development and management.” In the decades since, additional legislation by accretion has left a number of critical gaps and created conflicting and overlapping mandates for the relevant government institutions at the local, regional and national levels.

At the watershed level in the

TAW, local activism led to coordination across local government units under the auspices of the Tigum-Aganan Watershed Management Board (TAWMB), which was formed in

2000. On water issues at the city level, the Iloilo River Development Council (IRDC) was established in 2005 to implement the Iloilo River Development Master Plan (IBC 2004) and promote inter-agency coordination. After the national Clean Water Act was passed in 2004, both the Iloilo-Batiano Water Quality Management Area (IBWQMA; formed November 2009) and the Tigum-Aganan Water Quality Management Area (TAWQMA; formed December 2006) were formed to improve river conditions and promote sustainable development in their respective watersheds. Unfortunately, this proliferation of governance bodies focused on water management

Figure 6: Chart from the Philippine National Water

Resources Board indicating the crowded institutional landscape for water management

An Assessment of Water Security, Development, and Climate Change in Iloilo, Philippines and the Tigum-Aganan Watershed 16 has led to overlapping mandates, unclear authorities, and coordination remains a significant challenge.

In October 2011, Executive Order No. 62 mandated the creation of an Inter-Agency Committee on Water under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), tasking the Committee with developing a Water Sector Master Plan and recommending an appropriate organizational structure for implementation of that Plan. The framework plan developed by DPWH and

National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) proposed to strengthen the leadership and capacity of NWRB and transform the Agency to become a more effective management authority for the sector and to focus on more effective decentralization of resource management to the basin level (Tabios and

Villaluna, 2012).

The Local Government Act (1991) devolved regulatory oversight of water supply and sanitation services onto LGUs. However, within Iloilo, the mandates for both water services and water resource management are unclearly delineated among the city;

province; regional offices of

DENR, the Department of Interior and Local Government, and the

Department of…