Legarda: Nurturing nature is strongest flood defense

Disaster resilience cannot be engineered solely by concrete but must be grown, restored and sustained, according to Senator Loren Legarda as she pushed for nature-based solutions to destructive flooding caused by powerful typhoons.

“We cannot keep reacting to typhoons or floods. We must live with them wisely, with foresight, science, and the guidance of nature,” said Legarda in a privilege speech delivered at the Senate on 11 November.

“Nurturing nature is our strongest flood defense,” she declared. “Flood protection should begin not with cement but with soil, trees and ecosystems, a layered defense shaped by nature’s design.”

The deaths and destruction caused by typhoons “Tino” and “Uwan” mean nature is speaking of “unchecked mining and reclamation, deforestation, unregulated construction, uncontrolled urban sprawl into no-build zones, poor waste management, and corruption in infrastructure,” according to the chairman of the Senate Committee on Culture and the Arts.

She called for a complete reorientation of national policy, echoing the University of the Philippines Resilience Institute’s recommendation to move away from rigid megaprojects and toward flexible, nature-based systems.

The four-term senator asserted that flood protection must begin upstream, extend through rivers and cities, and reach the coasts, along with governance reforms. She suggested the following solutions:

•Restore watersheds through native reforestation, bamboo and vetiver groves, catchment ponds, and contour farming;

•Protect forests from illegal logging, mining, and encroachment;

•Reconnect floodplains, rehabilitate riparian buffers, and restore wetlands as natural sponges;

•Replace concrete embankments with gabions and coconets reinforced with deep-rooted vegetation;

•Stop converting riverbanks into commercial or residential zones;

•Build permeable pavements, bioswales, rain gardens, retention parks, green roofs and rainwater harvesters;

•Enforce solid waste laws and no-build zones, end exemptions for politically connected developers;

•Restore mangroves and seagrass beds for coastal protection;

•Align agencies under an Integrated Flood Management and River Basin Framework;

•Use multi-hazard maps to guide planning — flood, landslide, earthquake and storm surge risks must be integrated; and

•Ensure all projects are science-based, risk-informed, and climate-aligned — not politically determined.

The senator also called for the strict enforcement of existing laws which she championed and supported, including the Clean Water Act, the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, and the National Building Code’s no-build zones. She reminded the public that resilience begins at home.

She said citizens must not throw waste into canals, rivers or streets; must not obstruct waterways or build structures in riverbeds; and must support barangay-level waste segregation programs.

Further, Legarda encouraged the gradual reduction of single-use plastics and active participation in community-based tree planting, river clean-ups, and disaster preparedness drills.