Manila, Philippines – Water supply issues and shortages caused by the recent typhoon that struck the island of Luzon are proof of the importance of forest environments, says the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Philippines.

Typhoon Ulysses (International Name: Vamco) – the fourth in a series of strong storms to strike the country between the months of October and November – passed through Central Luzon, bringing with it heavy rains. Much of the land across the island of Luzon was waterlogged from the previous storms, and the additional rain brought by Ulysses led to flooding similar to what was seen during Tropical Storm Ondoy back in 2009.

As floods inundated cities across Luzon, mudslides and heavy erosion caused the waters of Ipo Dam to turn brown. This led to days of water shortages in certain areas across Metro Manila.

Approximately 6 million Filipinos living in Metro Manila were affected by water shortages experienced in March of 2019 – almost half the population of the urban metropolis.

WWF-Philippines has been working with local stakeholders on forest protection and conservation efforts to mitigate massive siltation events of this scale from happening again in the future. The root systems of a healthy forest, reminds the environmental conservation organization, help in controlling soil erosion and the siltation.