THE BALILI PROFILE... The headwater of Balili River is Sagudin River and is found in Trancoville barangay, Baguio City.

Sagudin River is sustained by tributary creeks coming from Pacdal, Cabinet Hill, ew !ucban, Honeymoon, "uisad, and Sto. ino #formerly Slaughter Com$ound% barangays. The water of the tributary creek from Sto. ino comes from Burnham !ake and other effluents from the business districts of Baguio City like &agsaysay 'venue and Session Road. These waters converge and flow downstream towards !a Trinidad, Benguet as the Balili River, which in turn drains into aguilian River. The $resent classification of aguilian River is Class ('), which is $ublic water su$$ly Class **. WATER QUALITY MONITORING AND IMPROVEMENT UNDERTAKEN A. Water Quality M !it ri!" &onthly water +uality monitoring and sam$ling were conducted by ,- R.C'R since /anuary 0112. ' total of nineteen #01% monitoring and sam$ling stations were established along the barangays where the tributary creeks traverse. Si3 #2% stations are in !a Trinidad, Benguet and thirteen #04% are within boundaries of Baguio City. The monitoring and sam$ling stations were selected in a way to be able to identify the $ossible sources of $ollution and to +uantify the contribution of each of the barangays in Baguio City and !a Trinidad to the $ollution of Balili River. The analysis of water sam$les collected from the identified sam$ling stations in 0112.0115 shows that6 0. The most $olluted sam$ling stations in terms of ,issolved 73ygen #,7% are Stations 08, 04 and 09. These stations have consistently low ,7 levels which indicate the $resence of large amounts of organic matter that use u$ o3ygen for its decom$osition. This means that the water at the abovementioned stations is not ca$able of sustaining a+uatic life. However, at the downstream $ortion of Balili River at Station 0, ,7 readings obtained were already within acce$table levels #:mg;0 or more than%. This could be attributed to dilution with other tributary creeks with much higher ,7 levels and aided by its continuous and turbulent flow. The turbulent flow of a river causes aeration, thereby increasing the ,7 of the River. <. The $H of Balili River and its tributaries ranges from 2.: to 1.:. Considering $H level alone as a $arameter, this would $ass the standard of a Class (') River. 4. The Total ,issolved Solids #T,S% load averages below :88mg;!. The T,S of a Class (') River should not e3ceed 0888mg;!. =. The Total Sus$ended Solids #TSS% load in stations 08 and 04 e3ceed the standard limit of :8mg;! B. F r#ati ! $ a Multi%&e't rial M !it ri!" Gr u( !inkages with concerned $rivate and government agencies were established to address the common goal of im$roving the water +uality of Balili River. This resulted in the formation of a &ulti.Sectorial &onitoring "rou$ with the members signing a &emorandum of >nderstanding #&7>% to ?ointly undertake the task of $rotecting the water +uality of Balili River and its

tributaries within Baguio City and !a Trinidad by $lanning and im$lementing measures towards this goal. ). Tie%u( *it+ t+er l 'al " ,er!#e!t u!it- a!. i!-tituti !&ore individuals and institutions were involved in the $rotection of Balili River in 0115 as the level of awareness of the citi@enry increased. D. Water Quality A--e--#e!t *dentified ma?or $ollution sources 0. Solid wastes or garbage from households, $articularly $lastics and styrofoams are very dominant along the stretch of Balili River. These are seen floating or forming small islands in the middle of the River. 'side from the garbage being an eyesore, it clogs the waterways causing flooding during heavy rains. <. ,omestic sewage is also directly discharged into the river by some households. These $ollutants do not only $ose danger and risk to a+uatic life but also humans. 4. >ntreated effluents from business establishments such as used oil from motor and machine sho$s also contribute to the degradation of the River. =. Human activities like car wash along the River and the on.going construction and widening of the Baguio.!a Trinidad.Bontoc Road. *m$ro$er containment of e3cavated materials from the said construction may cause siltation of the river. E. ) !.iti ! a!. U-e $ Balili Ri,er 0. Aater from the river is $um$ed and used to irrigate vegetable and flower gardens along Bm = in !a Trinidad, Benguet. The River also irrigates the farms in Bahong, !a Trinidad, noted for its wide rose gardens <. Aatercress is $lanted along the riverbanks in the Bell Church area, Bm 4, !a Trinidad 4. Presence of small fish s$ecies like gu$$y and ?o?o were noted at the riverside of Bm : area, !a Trinidad =. 'lgae are abundant at the downstream $ortion of Balili River along Ca$itol area in !a Trinidad F. Pr ( -e. Pr te'ti ! Pla! 0. Cencing along the riversides, which are easy garbage dum$ing areas, to minimi@e indiscriminate throwing of garbage into the river. Billboards and signs should also be installed with the fences for added effect <. Planting and $ro$agation of bamboo along the riversides for erosion control 4. Construction of communal se$tic tanks in some barangays. This could be looked into by concerned authorities and endorse a resolution to the City Council for funding

=. >ndertake an intensified and continuous *nformation and -ducation Cam$aign #*-C%. :. Clearing of all storm drains and canals to $revent flooding during heavy rains. OTHER INFORMATION ON BALILI RIVER The Balili River is $art of the Baguio Aater ,istrictDs so called. (inferred a+uifer @one). areas for groundwater e3traction that are considered high.yielding because of transmissive flow $ath. This means that the discharge;recharge $rocess of water in these areas is +uite active. These a+uifer @ones include the Trancoville, TeachersD Cam$.&. Ro3as and Busol a+uifers. BA, is convinced that groundwater behavior in these areas act in a manner that, as water drains into the Balili River, the River itself, through its underground tributaries, acts as recharge $oint for ground water re$lenishment. The $otential contribution of the Balili River as a water source indicates one of the biggest challenges for ground;surface water source management for all sectors concerned. 7ne of the obstacles that have been identified is the ra$id rate of urbani@ation in the general area of the Balili River, which is !a Trinidad, Benguet and Baguio City. >rbani@ation brings about an increase in the demand for water, the $roblem on waste generation and dis$osal, the conversion of land to residential, commercial and industrial use, leak and s$ill of to3ic and ha@ardous substances into waterways. The conse+uential effect of urbani@ation in the im$airment of water resources is largely foreseen. This gradually reduces the effective watersheds of ma?or river systems. including the Balili River. and ultimately groundwater recharge. *t is therefore recommended to identify solutions to the Balili River $roblem in this $articular conte3t.