DOST to predict exact flood levels using 3D map

source: mb.com.ph

MANILA, Philippines – Deep flooding may come anytime but not without the public forewarned, Science and Technology Secretary Mario Montejo said on Tuesday as he explained the advantages of having a three-dimensional map amid threats of typhoons and other related calamities.

He told the Manila Bulletin that with the 3D map, which has been approved by President Aquino, government authorities would know not just the specific areas that would be flooded in times of typhoons but predict as well the exact levels of flood water.

With this information out before the calamity develops, Montejo said billions of pesos in properties would be saved and lives would be spared from danger.

He said although the map does not give a real-time image of the country, it would provide his department all the information they would need to come out with precise calculations as to the level of floodwater a typhoon may bring into the country and spot the areas to be affected.

Dr. Eric Paringit, chairman of the UP Geodetic Engineering Department, who would be part of the technical team that would render inputs for the creation of the map, said all areas in the country that would be flooded would certainly be spotted through the map because the data it would provide will include the elevation of lands and the level of waters in dams and river systems.

The amount of rains brought about by typhoons, on the other hand, would be determined by DoST’s doppler radars, he added.

Dr. Aura Matias. Dean of the UP College of Engineering, said since the 3D map would provide scientific data on a national scale, it would allow a simultaneous measurement of water levels in different parts of the country during typhoons, which was not done in the past.

In the past, she noted, the measurement of water level was just limited to particular areas that have models.

“We had been in the national hydraulics research center. That’s really what they are doing, primarily assessing the flow of water. However, the activities done in the past are area-specific. This one (3D map) is national scale. With models, you would know volumes, you know how water flows. So you should be able to determine the speed and the volume of water that would rush to a particular area coming from whatever direction, whether it is coming from a tsunami wave, mountains or rains,” she said.

Montejo said 3D map data, gathered through Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) system, are so accurate that no actual survey is needed anymore to know the geodetic setup of any particular area in the country.

LIDAR is an optical remote sensing technology that can measure the distance to, or other properties of a target by illuminating the target with light, often using pulses from a laser. The technology has application in geomatics, archaeology, geography, geology, geomorphology, seismology, forestry, remote sensing and atmospheric physics
He said the map may sound expensive as it costs P1.4 billion, but he said this is actually smaller that what is spent by the government for mapping purposes. This, Montejo explained, is because LIDAR data gathered in the past were acquired in piece-meal basis.

“Besides, what is P1.5 billion compared to cost of damage of approximately P100 billion, which was wrought by (typhoon) ‘Ondoy’…We’d rather spend the amount to be proactive against calamities,” he added.

source: mb.com.ph