SCMAP Perspective is our fortnightly column on PortCalls, tackling the latest developments in the supply chain industry, as well as updates from within SCMAP. On this column, Henrik Batallones ponders weeks of non-stop monsoon rains and thinks of how our logistics facilities may be contributing to worsening flooding.
No blockage
The non-stop rains over the last couple of weeks has got me thinking about many things.
Some of them, of course, are way too familiar to us. The floods. The disruptions to daily routines. The impact on classes, on work. The flood control investigations and how it’s, understandably, slow, and also, inexplicably, too slow.
And then there are the other things. Would the rains be enough to fill up the dropping water levels of our dams? Yes, but also, would it be enough to keep us going as we stare drier than usual weather as this “super” El Niño rolls along? How about the fact that places that don’t usually get badly flooded are badly flooded? And I don’t think it’s just because of how saturated the land is with water, how it can no longer take any more.
Some residents have complained about how unfinished flood control projects have made them even more vulnerable to flooding. There’s enough coverage of that around. I remember this documentary from ABS-CBN News about how residents of a barangay in Calumpit, Bulacan are left with no choice but to wade through the water to get to school or work – and back home – because of floods that aren’t receding. (In some cases, residents were forced to abandon their homes.) I’ve been thinking about how our economic growth has gotten even slower – just up by 2.3% in the second quarter of this year, dragged down by continued lack of construction spending and infrastructure investment. There is a benefit, optics-wise, for government to be extra deliberate when it comes to projects that have traditionally been a hotbed of corruption, but between this, high fuel prices and high inflation, more decisive action has to be made. Perhaps it’s time the government spends again.
In other cases, residents who have previously not suffered from flooding are now going through them. There were reports of several residents in Imus and Kawit attributing the flooding in their barangays to the ongoing construction of the Cavite-Laguna Expressway. While CALAX management have said their activities are not the direct cause of the flooding, they nevertheless vowed to do more to minimize such effects. And in any case, the debris and blockages caused by daily construction work could impact flooding in some areas, like how some local governments have attributed flooding, in part, to unfinished work on the MRT-7.
As I write this, there’s another story, of residents in San Pedro, Laguna, complaining of floods after a creek was covered with soil by the owners of the land. And that has got me thinking about our obligations to the communities we serve, and especially to the communities that host us, as the logistics sector continues to expand. With road networks in Luzon stretching out further away from Manila, more provinces in central and southern Luzon are becoming attractive locations for manufacturers, retailers and logistics providers to establish distribution centers, whether they be small facilities or large ones that cover multiple clients and regions. It’s reasonable to say that the construction of these facilities could negatively impact those that live around it. And what would the optimal costs brought about by these new facilities be if it comes with additional costs due to disrupted waterways, more intense flooding, and poorer quality of life for residents – some of which may be your workers, too?
Consider this a reminder, then. If construction is still ongoing or has yet to commence, you ought to make sure that building your facility will not come at the expense of the community hosting you. You must work closely with your contractors, designers and even landowners to make sure that everything is covered – and, perhaps, you should also keep a critical eye on whether shortcuts are being done in the name of additional capacity. (Also, have you considered turning parts of your facility into an underground water detention tank? It might be wishful thinking, but our large footprints could make for ideal candidates.)
If the facility is already completed, then make sure your drainage systems and water capture facilities are working and are not blocked. You also make sure that your employees and partners are following waste management protocols – throwing garbage in the right places, for starters, but also making sure that they are disposed of properly.
Expanding our supply chain networks and building new facilities to support our business’ (and our clients’) growth is a large ask not just for our bottom line, but for the resources of the places that will host them. In our little way, we can make sure that our facilities are not a net negative – that we can truly contribute not just to our business, but to our communities – that we are no blockage to development. And besides, it’d be nice not to be seen as the cause for endless floodwaters, or constant power outages, or dirty tap water…