Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) Chairman and Administrator Rey Velasco ended his stint in the MWSS with a groundbreaking ceremony for the Million Trees Foundation Inc. (MTFI) plant and saplings nursery at the La Mesa Watershed area.
Velasco, a former police general, initiated the Annual Million Trees Challenge (AMTC) project of the MWSS, which aims to rehabilitate seven critical watersheds, namely, Angat, Ipo, Kaliwa, La Mesa, Laguna Lake, Umiray and Upper Marikina including Manila Bay that is essential in the water supply chain in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.
Also present during the event at the La Mesa Watershed area were incoming Administrator Engr. Leonor Cleofas, incoming Board Chairman Justice Jose Ricafort Hernandez, Maynilad Water Services Inc. President and CEO Ramoncito S. Fernandez, Bulacan Bulk Water Head of Operations Emman Avengoza and Santa Clara International Corp. Founder Nick Linao.
Velasco will be leaving the MWSS with his pet project, the AMTC on track, achieving more than its target of 4 million trees in four years.
“We have to join hands to address the state of our watersheds as these greatly affect our water supply. I am grateful to the proponents of Million Trees Foundation Inc. [MTFI] for joining together for a noble cause,” Velasco said in news statement.
Velasco emphasized that water is not only used to sustain basic life but also to give more quality to the way of living. The outgoing MWSS chief also thanked MWSS concessionaires Manila Water, Maynilad, and Luzon Clean Water Development Corp.; and other project partners for supporting the AMTC. “AMTC would not have been as successful without the support of the concessionaires and other civic organizations.”