TACLOBAN CITY — The major anti-rockslide project in Southern Leyte province is moving to the next phase, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Southern Leyte field office reported on Wednesday.
DPWH Southern Leyte chief Margarita Junia said the PHP62 million project, which is up for completion within the year, is located in Sitio Bil-atan, Camang village in San Ricardo, Southern Leyte where rockslides occur during rainy days, rendering the road impassable.
“We have to extend this netting project to the whole stretch of this road section to ensure safety of the traveling public. Erosion and rock slides issues would likely continue if the problem will not be addressed,” Junia said in a mobile phone interview.
The first phase of this anti-rockslide project, with an allocation of PHP27 million, was completed last year.
The district office utilizes Switzerland’s rockfall protection netting technology that installs high tensile wire netting for slope stabilization.
Rock netting is used on unstable rock faces and slopes to prevent and control rockfall, protect against the effect of erosion, and to improve soil and rock stability.
Aside from rock netting, other works include installation of stone masonry crib walls, slope protection, and metal guardrails.
The Bil-atan road section is part of the highway being developed into a circumferential road linking San Ricardo and Liloan towns. This road leads to Benit port, the region’s exit point to Mindanao.
The ongoing road opening project is designed to provide buses and big trucks safer routes to Benit port in San Ricardo town instead of traversing the landslide-prone and accident-prone road sections in San Francisco and Pintuyan towns. (PNA)
