Marcos urges Filipinos to collect rainwater ahead of Super El Niño

SINGAPORE — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. urged Filipinos to prepare buckets and other containers to collect rainwater as the government drew up measures to address possible water shortages during the expected Super El Niño.

Marcos said the government would launch an information campaign teaching households how to collect, filter, and treat rainwater to make it safe for use.

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“Part of that public service and those public service messages will be, collect, bumili na kayo ng balde para ‘pag umulan, makolekta na ninyo lahat,” Marcos said during a Kapihan interview in Singapore on Sunday.

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(Buy buckets now so that when it rains, you can collect all the rainwater.)

The President said the government would also provide guidance on treating and filtering collected water to prevent waterborne illnesses.

“Tuturuan namin kayo — we’ll give you how to fil — ‘yung gamot para maging malinis. We’ll give you the filter,” he said.

(We will teach you how to make the water clean, including what treatment to use. We will give you the filter.)

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“We’ll teach you how to do everything para hindi kayo magkasakit at maayos ang pag-treat ng tubig, pag-filter ng tubig. And it will be healthy even for little children,” he added.

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(We’ll teach you how to do everything so you won’t get sick and so the water is properly treated and filtered. It will be safe even for young children.)

Marcos said water conservation would be part of a broader government response to the anticipated dry conditions, with preparations covering dams and household water supplies.

The government was also preparing cloud-seeding operations to induce rainfall, including arrangements for scheduling the activities and procuring the necessary materials.

The preparations come as the state weather bureau warned that a strong El Niño could intensify and persist into 2027, increasing the risk of below-normal rainfall, drought and water supply disruptions in parts of the country.

Earlier this month, Malacañang urged the public to prepare for possible water shortages without resorting to panic-buying or hoarding bottled water.

Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said the government was coordinating with concerned agencies to address the weather phenomenon’s possible effects on water supplies and agriculture.

Apart from water conservation, Marcos said he had instructed the government to prepare rice imports to secure food supplies ahead of possible disruptions to the next cropping season.

He said the current rice harvest was expected to be sufficient but warned that the succeeding harvest could be affected by prolonged dry conditions.

“Alam niyo naman, hangga’t maaari, ayaw ko mag-import. Pero sabi ko, mag-import na kayo para tiyak tayo na mayroon tayong supply,” Marcos said.

(You know that as much as possible, I don’t want to import. But I told them to import already so we can be sure we have enough supply.)

The President also called for a revival of household vegetable gardening, warning that vegetable production could be particularly vulnerable to drought.

“So sabi ko, balikan natin ‘yung Green Revolution. Let’s encourage everybody,” he said.

(So I said, let’s return to the Green Revolution. Let’s encourage everybody.)

Marcos said the government was also preparing hospitals for possible health risks associated with prolonged dry conditions, including ensuring adequate electricity, generator fuel, and medical supplies.

He added that agencies were studying alternative learning arrangements in case extreme heat disrupted face-to-face classes.

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The President said concerned agencies had been instructed to submit detailed action plans and schedules for the government’s El Niño response. /jpv