Caraga has most number of landslide, flood-prone areas

As part of its disaster risk reduction planning and management program, the Office of Civil Defense-Caraga has identified a total of 183 landslide prone areas, 231 flood-prone areas and 103 land cracks all over the region.

Caraga region is composed of the provinces of Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur and Dinagat Islands.

The region has 67 municipalities from previous 70 after three capital towns, namely Tandag in Surigao del Sur , Cabadbaran in Agusan del Norte and Bayugan in Agusan del Sur, were coverted into component cities. It has a total of 1,703 barangays.

The Office of Civil Defense said 78 areas in Surigao del Norte were identified as landslide-prone; followed by Dinagat Islands province, which has seven municipalities with 65 identified areas; Surigao del Sur with 21 areas while Agusan del Sur, 14 and Agusan del Norte, eight from 11 municipalities.

Unfortunately these provinces have the most number of large-scale and small-scale approved mining operations and activities.

The region is now dubbed the “Mining Capital of the Philippines if not in the whole of Asia with 48 approved large-scale and 350 small scale mining permits.

In Santiago, Agusan del Norte for instance, there are three landslide and four flood-prone areas, where several mining activities are ongoing.

The town alone has three large-scale mining areas with 7 areas under small-scale mining operations.

Agusan del Sur province topped the flood-prone areas with 128 areas identified.

Agusan del Sur, Agusan del Norte and Surigao del Sur had the most number of companies engaged in both legal and illegal cutting of naturally grown trees in pubic timberlands.

Surigao del Sur has 97 identified flood prone areas followed by Dinagat Islands with 65 then Agusan del Norte including Butuan City with 55 and Surigao del Norte with only 13 identified flood prone areas. (MUC/MB)

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