Quarrying in P’sinan town hit; viaduct urged

ROSALES, Pangasinan — Farmers and the Rural folks here have appealed to the provincial government to intervene and stop the ongoing quarrying and landfilling activities purportedly designed for an 8-km section of the proposed Tarlac-Pangasinal-La Union Expressway citing anti-flood and environmental reasons.

Gov Amado T. Espino Jr., was urged last week to stop quarrying and land filling works.

They said "what we need is a viaduct, not a dike road which would cause, not prevent flooding in our town during rainy days."

The farmers said Espino had already directed his assistant former Mayor Ramon Morden to inspect the area.

At press time, the quarrying and land filling stopped, delighting the farmers, adding "we hope it will be permanent and give way to the construction of a viaduct which right-thinking engineers recommend."

The landfilling was meant to build a dike-road as part of the ongoing construction of the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway.

This project, the Northern Luzon Expressway would shorten travel time between the Northern provinces and Manila.

One of the good projects started by the past administration, the NLEX-TPLEX is being continued by the Aquino administration.

The higher authorities at the DPWH and DOTC in charge of the project were also informed on the concern of the farmers where more than l,000 residents signed the letter.

In their letter, the signatories "residing in l9 barangays of Rosales appeal to your good office to investigate and stop immediately the ongoing land filling activities by Nepomoceno Trucking Company."

The letter added that the land filling is "with the knowledge of local officials ... in clear violation of what the residents have proposed, which is a viaduct for the TPLEX."

The complainants said Espino was angry at the reported land filling activities and ordered his staff to stop it.

Part of the quarrying, the letter said, has reached foot of Balungao mountain near a National Park and "very near a live volcano, which could erupt once disturbed. This is serious and frightening".

The landfilling already covered a sizable portion of the proposed 8-km section of the TPLEX in Rosales," the letter added.

Residents here are constantly besieged by fears of floods because of their harrowing experience during the last flood brought by Typhoon Pepeng. The floods reached the rooftops killing two people.

They also lamented that the contractors provided only three small culverst between l00 meters to serve as outlets "not enough to hold volumes of water."

They said it would normally three to five days for floodwaters to recede, adding the situation, if not checked, would be much worse during floods. -- LBI