DOST holds landslide forum for stakeholders

BAGUIO CITY -- The Dept. of Science and Technology, as vice chair of the Cordillera Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council for disaster mitigation and prevention, recently headed a regional forum on landslide here.

Held at Citylight Hotel here on Dec. 4 and 5, the forum was attended by over a hundred participants from CRDRRMC member agencies, academic institutions, non – government agencies and other local DRRM stakeholders from the different local government units in the region.

DOST-CAR regional director Dr. Nancy Bantog said the 2-day forum aimed to gather researchers, scientists, stakeholders, policy makers and implementers and disaster managers dealing with landslide risks reduction and management for knowledge sharing and encourage researches and utilization of research and development outputs and science based technologies for landslide - related disaster prevention and mitigation in the region.

The participants were presented the hydro – meteorological forecasts and climate change projection including hydromet effects that may cause landslide by PAGASA Northern Luzon chief Engr. Fredolina Baldonado, while PHIVOLCS Science Research Specialist II Margarita Dizon gave a presentation on the geohazards and risks in the region.

Mines and Geo – Science Bureau geologist II Kelvin Carlo Gaerlan also presented the result of MGB – CAR Landslide Awareness and Susceptibility Assessment for Cordillera.  Participants were also given an overview of the Philippine LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) mapping technology, the Landslide Early Warning System of DOST – PHIVOLCS and the Cordillera DRRM Information System that DOST – CAR developed.

There were also briefing on the Philippine Microsat Program; COARE (Computing and Archiving Research Environment; PEDRO or the Philippine Earth Data Resource and Observation Center, and DATOS, DOST’s R&D initiative that uses Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System and other data science technique to produce disaster - relevant information.

Through this activity, we hope to increase the awareness on the concepts of landslide risk reduction and management that will lead to the improvement of local DRRM plans and policies and at the same time will boost R&Ds, projects and activities relative to risk assessment and the development of early warning systems, Bantog said.

In support to R&D, the department is continuously working to provide an enabling environment for research and development through human resource development by giving S&T scholarships; provision of R&D facilities, and assistance to technology transfer for R&D results utilization, she added. -- JDP/CCD-PIA