SMC Nears Completion of Bulacan River Cleanup, Pampanga Up Next

San Miguel Corporation (SMC) is nearing the completion of its extensive river cleanup project in Bulacan, having removed over 4.2 million tons of silt and waste from the province’s waterways.

Spanning 74 kilometers, this effort represents the largest volume extracted in SMC’s Luzon-wide river rehabilitation initiative. The project is a part of SMC’s “Better Rivers PH” advocacy and has been operating since 2020 without any cost to the government or taxpayers. Previous efforts have targeted the Tullahan, Pasig, and San Juan rivers in Metro Manila, among others.

In Bulacan, SMC’s cleanup has focused on major rivers such as the Taliptip-Maycapiz-Bambang, Meycauayan, Marilao, Mailad-Sta. Maria, Guiguinto, Balagtas, Pamarawan, Kalero, and Labangan-Angat Rivers.

 

 

 

 

 

“Our river cleanup initiative in Bulacan is now in its second year and, so far, it is the most extensive of all our projects. The total volume of waste and silt we’ve removed—4,255,398 tons—is nearly double the combined volume extracted from the Pasig and Tullahan rivers,” said SMC Chairman and CEO Ramon S. Ang.

 

 

 

 

As the Bulacan cleanup nears completion, SMC is setting its sights on the Pampanga River. The company also plans to extend its cleanup efforts to areas in Binan, Laguna, and Paranaque City.

Ang emphasized the critical role of desilting and clearing river obstructions in mitigating flooding. He noted that flooding is exacerbated by factors such as low-lying geography, deforestation, clogged waterways, rising sea levels, land subsidence, and the proliferation of fishponds.

Recently, Metro Manila and nearby provinces experienced widespread flooding due to heavy rainfall brought on by Typhoon Carina. Although flooding affected many areas, Ang stated that the impact could have been significantly worse without the completed river cleanup efforts, which have increased the rivers’ carrying capacity and ensured a continuous flow.

“Flooding is a complex problem with multiple causes that require various solutions. We can’t conveniently blame it on a single factor when multiple contributing factors have been building up over several generations,” Ang added.