3D Mapping Project in Philippines Unveiled

President Benigno Aquino III of the Philippines announced (via Inquirer) that the Government allocated 1 billion pesos for three-dimensional mapping of the entire country. According to Aquino III, it is designed to minimise damage during natural disasters. Aquino made this announcement during the inauguration of the new PHP 243-million Agno River Basin Flood Forecasting and Warning System.

The President said, “One of our proposals is the development of a comprehensive 3-D mapping of the whole Philippines. We will release P1 billion for this. With this mapping, our perspective of every corner of the country will widen, resulting in an improved capability to know which areas are vulnerable to floods.”

The President said this will also give the government more time to help Filipinos at risk from flooding. The Agno River Basin Flood Forecasting and Warning System is an early warning facility meant to provide timely, reliable and understandable flood warnings and bulletins in the provinces of Tarlac and Pangasinan. The system had received PHP 154-million grant from the Japanese government through the Japan International Cooperation Agency.

“The flood forecasting and warning system is equipped with automatic monitoring stations that observe every hour, in real time, the intensity of rainfall and the level of the Agno River and its tributaries, including Sinocalan River,” said Nathaniel Servando, acting administrator of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.