Uh oh, are you safe from floods at home? What about after several years? When buying a house, do you ask about the water source? Have you ever thought of asking about it? Well now is the time to do so because the land we live on are sinking everyday and only a few are aware of it! 😮
The reason I remembered this is because I was considering to buy a house and lot somewhere in Batangas province. I was able to watch a YouTube video of a new owner of a certain property in another province. He said the water is dirty because the source is from a deep well system. Uh oh, warning bells rang in my head when he said deep well.
Normally people will not care about where we get the water as long as there is water to use.
That kind of thinking needs to change now. We keep wasting clean water because we think it is going to be around forever. Sorry to disappoint you but if we waste clean water we will add to our country and the entire world's water shortage and flood problem.
Land subsidence is the sinking or lowering of the land we live on. For a bit more explanation you can watch this video too:
Where in the Philippines has Land Subsidence Happened?
Coastal areas in Bulacan and also those in Metro Manila are perfect examples of places that have sunk lower. For sure you have experienced floods here in certain areas of Metro Manila and in many provinces living near the sea.
Just watch this news video and see what I mean. (No English subtitles.)
A lot of us are still using deep well systems as a source of water. This is the reason why we experience worse floods year after year. Our land is sinking slowly but surely. Aside from issues from our drainage plus this water system, if the polar ice caps are melting it will cause the sea level to rise and add to the flooding problem.
If you have Maynilad or Manila Water as source of water, that is from reserves in the dams from mountains and rainwater. That is so much better than ground water imho.
But what about the areas that don't have any water source? I found out Batangas and Cavite property developments from various developers use deep well water system. Of course even those who develop land in other areas/provinces use deep well systems too. This is a problem the property developers need to address.
People in the provinces typically use deep well systems. Yes I know because when I was a kid we lived in the province and everywhere we went there is a poso (manual water pump) to get water from.
Aside from that we also use a water pump to bring water into the house. That has been the case for decades. Imagine how many houses and people live per province and everyone has a deep well water source. Scary right?
There used to be no flooding in that municipality until several years ago. Suddenly I found out they have been experiencing floods in some areas when typhoons arrive. (That is according to my former grade school or high school classmates.) This news made me sad.
Times have really changed. And who is at fault? All of us don't know the effects of actions we've been doing for decades until it gives us problems. Now is the time to change and stop using this kind of water extraction. If we don't then our houses will all get flooded in the future.
What Other Countries Are Experiencing Sinking Land?
If you do an online search of this problem you will find out about towns sinking in Indonesia, Calcutta (India), South Pacific islands, Beijing (China), California (USA) etc. The land all over the world are sinking. No one is safe from this world issue if we keep abusing our planet.
Typhoons, cutting of mangroves and rising sea levels are not the only cause of sinking land. It is also because of mass draining of water inside the earth.
Land Subsidence is a Worldwide Problem. What can we do to help Stop or Minimize this?
At this point we can probably slow it down. I am not an expert or a scientist but if we think about it we can all do something to reduce this problem. One person saving water is already a big help to the world.
Imagine if ALL of us do our part in stopping land subsidence. Wow what a safer world it would be. No more floods, no more water shortage, no more sinking coastal areas, no more waste of millions of money by flood caused damages. Wow right?
So what can we do to help reduce land subsidence? These are what I was able to think of:
Let us contact our congressmen or senators so they will create laws that will prevent and solve this land subsidence problem.
Developers and homeowners associations should stop using deep well systems in new and old property developments NOW.
All of us should be aware of the dangers of long term use of this kind of water extraction.
When making or buying a house and/or lots in provinces, ask the developers/construction companies of new properties/subdivisions what they can do to stop deep well water drainage and avoid future land sinking problem.
Ask the real estate agents (like me) and brokers about why developers are still using deep well systems when it will lower the land level in the future. Doing this will make the question passed on to the management if many people ask about it. (I have already done this to two developers and am waiting for their reply.) If many people do this, it brings awareness to the company owners that we are not ignorant of this issue anymore.
Ask the same question on developer/property posts on social media. If we don't ask we will not make them stop doing draining underground water.
We should gather and save rainwater and use it for our everyday needs (washing clothes/dishes, watering plants, cooking, cleaning the car, etc.) to avoid using ground water. We don't want to add to making our country sink further.
Do not waste clean water. For example, use big basins when washing and rinsing dishes and other kitchen utensils to avoid excessive water usage. Close your faucet while brushing your teeth and only open it when you need to rinse your mouth/toothbrush.
These are some of the ways we can help save ourselves from floods and land subsidence. Can you think of other ways to help? If we don't do any of the above then expect all our houses to sink in the future! (No that would not be a fun future for everyone.)
In our family we were taught to do number 8. Washing of dishes using a wide and deep basin is best to avoid wasting clean water. We rinse the dishes twice of course. Also when we brush our teeth we do not leave the faucet water running.
How about you, do you have other water saving tips you do everyday? Feel free to share. 😊
What About Farmers Who Depend on Deep Well Water Systems?
I do not have an answer to this. Maybe agriculturists can think of a solution. Maybe they can find a way to gather all the water from each typhoon that arrives and save them for future use? Is that feasible? I think that would be a lucrative business. Haha.
Somebody should build that kind of system so we can all stop using ground water. Everyone needs to do their part in preventing this world problem to get worse. We do not want to live in a water world, right? So we must do everything to help stop floods and sinking islands.
Nothing will change if we don't do something now. Let's not wait until we are already almost underwater because it would be too late by then. Let us take action to stop this now and don't wait for the government to do something. They will not act if we don't tell them about this problem.
Are you already experiencing floods when you never used to before? Can you suggest other ways to avoid land subsidence and stop deep well water systems? How can we apply such things in our daily life?
XOXO,
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You are right. But yeah saving water could help a lot.
People from the province rely on deep wells. First because there is no other source of water. Two because it is costly for them to create larger reservoir for storing water. Three creating reservoir will compromised trees and mountains.
A lot of things to consider. But have you noticed all the rivers full of garbage? Many industrial buildings are connected to it and they disposed their garbage to the river.
Natural Sources of Water like springs if not harmful is the best source of water supply. But looking at them right now. Made me think these kind of events that will ruin us? Has been ruined by us beforehand.
Even the natural gas and coal to produce electricity are being mined deep deep down the earth. It is not only water but everything that we have right now to increase the quality of lifestyle we have harmed our mother earth.