In order to determine the risks involved in planning for developments in any area in the Philippines, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) accelerated its effortsto geo hazard map the country through a project with the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA) and the Mines and Geoscences Bureau (MGB), to be completed by end- 2010.

According to DENR Secretary Lito Atienza, the P60 million project, which already mapped 75% or 1,098 municipalities of the targeted 1,600 municipalities, will, among others, determine the vulnerability of areas prone to landslides, floods, liquefaction, ground subsidence, and other ground instabilities, and, due to these, identify ideal areas for relocation of the residents living in these areas should the need arise.

Under the project that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo herself urged to be hastened, geohazard maps at the scale of 1:50,000 will be “produced to help individuals identify geologic hazards so that their adverse effects could be mitigated, (including the) loss of lives, and destruction of properties,” Atienza says.

And this is a classic example of how geomapping can benefit the world, says Francisca Nasol Dayrit, executive vice president of Geodata Systems Technologies Inc. (GSTI), the pioneering provider of geographically referenced materials in the Philippines.

“Still largely (under-appreciated) in the Philippines, geomapping can actually save lives, and, for that, should (actually be widely used),” she says.

Fortunately, for the Philippines, there are the likes of GSTI, which allow for the “collection of geographically referenced information through the most advanced technologies, thereby providing the most updated information that can be used for various purposes (such as in geohazard monitoring, in the case of the DENR).”

GSTI was established in the Philippines in 1991, some 20 years after ESRI launched the first geographic information system (GIS) software, ArcInfo, in the US. “With ESRI, we believed then, as we believe now, that geography is important – we always ask where, and for as long as we do, GIS will be of essence,” Dayrit says.

Dayrit started working for GSTI 17 years ago, after resigning from working for DENR itself. “Even then, with the absence of the use of geomapping, we already (knew how much) it could changed (practices) if/when made readily available,” recalls the Camalig, Albay native, who finished her Bachelor of Statistics degree, and a Master in Statistics (Urban and Regional Planning Business Administration) from the University of the Philippines.

Past positions include acting as director of the information management department of the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (1987 to 1991), OIC of planning service of the DENR (1989 to 1991), division chief of the information management division of Natural Resource Management Center (1979 to 1987), chief statistician of the research and statistics division of Ministry of Natural resources (1972 to 1979), and planning engineer of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (1971).

Now with GSTI, Dayrit is glad that she is able to continue serving (her intent when she joined the government when she was younger) even if “I am now doing it from the private sector,” she says. “Knowing I am doing something relevant makes it worth it.”

Through GSTI, current technologies are now in use in the country, so that “we are able to help our clients help in national development – from supporting land use planning to mapping and visualizing political and administrative boundaries, and from finding sites for promising businesses to open new branches/outlets to fighting crimes, and many others,” Dayrit says.

GSTI’s offerings are actually comprehensive, not just geomapping, to include application systems development, detailed systems design specifications, program construction and testing, documentation, user training, data analysis services, and system installation.

Among its clients include the military (which uses geomapping to identify high-risk areas, thereby enabling them to send more people to care for the people there), small businesses (to help them identify locations with the right traffic for their products/services), tourist industry players (venue location, et cetera), and others.

In geomapping is where the power of information can be best seen working, Dayrit says, since having the right information can certainly make or unmake operations of offices, private or public. “Thankfully, people are realizing this now, and (things) are picking up,” she ends.