The irrigation of 19,000 hectares more of rice lands in four Bohol towns is another step closer to completion.
This after Rep. Erico Aristotle Aumentado of Bohol’s 2nd District sought additional funds for the feasibility study of the Bohol Northeast Basin Multipurpose Irrigation System (BNBMIS).
Aumentado this week followed up with Administrator Florencio Padernal of the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) the release of more allocation on top of the previously released P10 million, and another P70 million from the 2015 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
The solon said the proposed project is qualified for development under NIA’s new criteria. Padernal had emphasized that funding will be released for the construction of new dams only if these have a natural source of continuously flowing water. Those that rely solely on rain as water source are at the bottom of NIA’s priority list.
The BNBMIS is the brainchild of the solon’s namesake father and immediate congressional predecessor, the late governor and Rep. Erico Boyles Aumentado.
The father had said the proposed system will cover all the irrigable areas of Bien Unido, 80% of the irrigable lands in Trinidad and portions of Ubay and San Miguel towns.
The project is estimated to cost P4 billion.
Cabinet Sec. Leoncio Evasco Jr. has also endorsed the project. With the huge Wahig River as water source, Evasco said the BNBMIS passes this stringent NIA criterion.
The project, it was learned, also got a positive response during NIA’s budget hearing.
To note, his father had first presented to NIA the project with five components, namely – irrigation, potable water system for far-flung barangays, tourism, hydroelectric power of up to 10 megawatts and flood control.
The system is a spinoff of a similar project in South Korea that the father-and-son tandem had visited. The father is known by the Koreans as a visionary leader who works very much ahead for solutions even for problems start.
When completed, the son said, the multi-faceted project will make the 2nd district a new tourism destination with many must-sees including the Danao Adventure Park and the underwater grotto in Bien Unido.
To note, the Leyte-Bohol Interconnection Project was also an Aumentado brainchild. It brought in 100 MW of power through submarine cables that surfaces in Tugas Point in Pres. Garcia island and goes overhead to the Bohol mainland in Imelda, Ubay.
Tapped as his father’s man on the ground, and chief of staff of the congressman until the latter’s untimely demise on Christmas Day of 2012, the son is now pursuing the realization of his father’s dreams.
The father had always stressed that Bohol must industrialize with no pollutants as these would run counter to the preservation of the environment upon which the province’s top tourist draws – tourism and agriculture – thrive.
The younger solon said he sees the wisdom of his father’s wishes hence, his pushing for renewable energy.
To note, as early as last year, several investors who expressed interest to develop power in Bohol had come over.
The solon’s professionalism and business charisma – just like his father’s – have apparently been the magnet for investors who understand his drive and dynamism in making his district, and the entire province, an investors’ haven. (June S. Blanco)