MANILA, Philippines — San Miguel Corporation (SMC) and North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) Corp. will deploy more than a dozen heavy equipment for the dredging operations, particularly in Valenzuela City as the government moves to address areas vulnerable to flooding.
Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon on Wednesday expressed gratitude to SMC Chairman Ramon S. Ang and NLEx management as the DPWH waited for the arrival of the heavy equipment before providing a timeline for the dredging operations.
“I cannot give a timeline yet because many of our equipment are still arriving. More than 20 pieces of heavy equipment will dredge simultaneously in the affected areas,” Dizon said.
He said most of the equipment would come from SMC, whose head, RSA (Ramon S. Ang) "did not really need to help us here, but he is doing it.” The NLEX management has also pledged to provide additional equipment to support the dredging operations, he added.
Dizon said he expected to provide a more definite timeline later this week once the equipment had arrived.
The top DPWH official cited the need to protect low-lying areas along the NLEx area leading to the northern city.
“There are also areas along NLEx that are low-lying, including the area near Meycauayan (Bulacan) going to Valenzuela. We also need to protect those areas,” Dizon said.
The dredging operation is part of efforts to improve waterways and reduce flooding risks in areas vulnerable to rising water levels, the public works department said.
