Binay, who chairs the HUDCC, said creating investor-friendly and safe settlements nationwide will help realize the administration’s goal of inclusive growth.
“We shall identify future settlements using new technologies on climate change, such as geohazard maps and LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), to protect our people and ensure that our communities would be out of danger from the effects of climate change,” Binay said on his Facebook page.
“This study will entail a long and very comprehensive urban planning but I believe that it is doable,” he added.
LiDar is the country’s first three-dimensional mapping technology that gives accurate topographical information.
Binay also said the study aims to correct a misconception that the best economic opportunities are in Metro Manila.
The misconception may have made Metro Manila reach its carrying capacity in a short time, he said.
“We need to reverse this trend. Instead of people going to one location to seek for greener pastures, we should bring the opportunities to them through these new settlements,” he said.
Binay noted the Cabinet Cluster on Climate Change chaired by Environment Secretary Ramon Paje had approved the study on the establishment of new and safer settlements.
He said Paje asked the HUDCC to lead the proposed study group.
Meanwhile, Binay said the proposed study will support the initiative of government officials to find new locations that would promote economic development citing Metro Manila’s very limited space. – VVP, GMA News
