A number of residents of Taguig City are urging Mayor Ma. Laarni Cayetano to clean the city’s creeks not only to prevent flooding but also to protect the health of the citizens.

Residents interviewed by the Daily Tribune noted the city government’s multimillion-peso budget for the environment for the clean-up job.

One the creeks the residents cited wasthe Conga Creek in Barangay Hagonoy which connects two other creeks in the nearby Barangay New Lower Bicutan.

Lorna de la Cruz, a Taguig resident, said a lot of garbage accumulated in the creek.

“The water is obviously dirty. You can see it yourself,” she said.

Another resident, who refused to be named, agreed with the observation of Dela Cruz. He said while there were efforts from the city government to clean up the creek in the past, they were only short-lived.

According to the Department of Science and Technology (DoST), water analysis on the 300-meter long Conga Creek showed high levels of coliform and zero oxygen level.

“It means the pollution in Conga Creek is way beyond the acceptable limit, using up all the oxygen,” DOST said in a statement issued last April.

In February this year, the DoST conducted a 3-hour clean-up drive at the Conga Creek jointly with the Cayetano administration and other government agencies. However, many residents alleged that the cleanup was merely superficial and did not really address the problem of garbage in the creek. NSB