Farmers and residents of Barangay Alapang, La Trinidad, Benguet will now be delivering their goods to the market without worrying about road obstructions during rainy days.

Drawing to a close is the construction of a 1.76 kilometer slope protection designed to protect the agricultural area as well as residential lots of around 3,735 direct beneficiaries who are residents of sitio Alapang Proper and Atoy. The total project cost is P4, 086,000.00

Engr. Elsa P. Gaspar, Rural Infrastructure Engineer assigned in Benguet said that prior to the construction, the  condition of the  road is concrete narrow but drainage canal and slope protection is absent.  During rainy months, landslides obstructs the road carriage way, blocking the barangay roads to the national highway.

Discouraged farmers experienced production losses and high spoilage rate of their agricultural products reported to be caused by landslides on critical portions of the road. Residents, on the other hand, complain that they are prevented from passing through due to road obstruction caused by soil erosion which occurs often times during rainy season.

According to the proposed subproject, the lack of slope protection of the access road contributes to high post-harvest losses to agricultural products especially during the monsoon season, typhoons and other natural calamity. The barangay experiences isolation due to landslides and road closures.

In response to this, the PRDP has funded the construction of a 1.76 kilometer slope protection structure with the aim of increasing the soil’s resistance to erosion, reducing postharvest losses due to impassable road caused by erosion by at least 10%, increasing agricultural production area by 10% and providing immediate protection of exposed areas as well.

The subproject was evaluated and expected to accrue such economic benefits as increase in agricultural production area by 10%, benefits of additional workday, and savings in transportation losses.

In addition, production losses will be diminished for saleable crops such as Chinese cabbage, lettuce, broccoli, pechay, mustard, chayote, coffee, and cutflowers particularly rose, and crysanthemum abundantly produced in the area.

With the subproject’s objectives, the residents of Alapang expressed their optimism that the construction of this slope protection structure shall jump-start the development of their barangay. (Ma. Imelda Isabel B. Zabala, RPCO-CAR InfoACE Unit)