Troops
of Charlie Company, 19th Infantry (Commando) Battalion were
among the first respondents of the landslide in Upper Mahi-ao,
Kananga, Leyte on March 1, 2013. The military were conducting
exercises in the area when the incident happened. A loud sound
was heard by the troops prompting them to immediately respond.
(19IB photo) |
No water
contamination at Kananga River, EMB says
By Philippine Information
Agency (PIA 8)
March 11, 2013
PALO, Leyte – There is no
contamination of Kananga River as a result of a landslide-induced
busted steam pipeline of the Energy Development Corporation, the
Environmental Management Bureau of the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources in Eastern Visayas informed.
EMB-8 Director Leticia
Maceda disclosed that based on the initial analysis of the water taken
from the Bao River in Kananga, Leyte, there was low concentration or
tolerable amount of Boron.
Director Maceda said that
Boron is a chemical element said to be inherent in any water spring.
Low presence of boron could serve as a nutrient to plants while its
high concentration could lead to stunted growth.
The amount of Boron is still
below the acceptable standard in the country which is
.75parts/million, Director Maceda said. The result of the sampling by
the multi-partite monitoring team composed of various government
agencies showed that the presence of Boron in the river was only .22
parts/million.
It was learned that for its
part, the EDC also conducted its own analysis on the presence of Boron
in the river which yielded the result of .25 parts/million.
Maceda, however, said that
the office submitted the water sample to an independent Manila-based
Austria Laboratory and is waiting for the result which is expected to
arrive anytime. She expressed confidence that the result from the
private lab would also yield a similar result.
The March 1 landslide in Pad
409 Upper Mahiao, Barangay Lim-ao in Kananga has not only resulted to
the death of 14 workers but also busted a steam pipe which several
sectors expressed fear to have caused Boron to spread to the
tributaries leading to the Bao River.
The site of the incident was
just about five kilometers away from Bao River, it was learned.
Earlier, Kananga Mayor Elmer
Codilla denied that there was water contamination due to the incident.