MACABEBE, Pampanga – An international group and the Local Government Unit (LGU) here have launched last week the floating homes pilot
project in Barangay Sto. Rosario.
The project is seen to address the year-round flooding in this coastal Pampanga town by providing a resilient house, said Peter Ham of Finch Floating Homes. He and members of his group – Tika Miejer Bodisco Massinik, Joran Van Schaik and Jurian Knitjtijer – are from the
Netherlands.
The house is on a rice field-turned-river and it is designed to remain “dry” despite floods, heavy rains and super typhoons, said Ham.
Councilor Bembong Balgan, who represented Macabebe Mayor Annette Flores-Balgan, said “the project is the future of Macabebe.” She
disclosed all of their 25 barangays are “flood-prone.”
“I can see a community with floating homes soon to address our problem,” said Balgan.
“The roads are dry nowadays but many houses are still under water. The situation is terrible,” added Councilor Balgan, who was chiefly
responsible for bringing in the members of the Finch Floating Homes to work on the pilot project.
The size of the house is 7.5 meter by 7.5 meter with a floor area of 25 square meters. It’s with a bathroom and has two rooms on the attic.
Ham said they will follow the standards of the Philippine Clean Water Act.
All of its materials are prefabricated and are available in Macabebe.
It sits on plastic water drums and coco lumber.
The house cost P500,000 and it took them six weeks to build it.
Ham said that the house will be initially used by a volunteer family.
“We will later interview them on what can they say about the house and living on it,” he said.