Project Rain Gauge: An Environmental Awareness and Disaster Preparedness Initiative

By Marinella Garcia-Sy
Science Teacher I, Smart Mentor
San Miguel National High School
San Miguel, Bulacan

Mother Nature has a way of getting back at man’s mismanagement of his environment. For so long a time we have witnessed the appalling and disheartening natural calamities that have claimed human lives and properties. Sadly, we have not learned our lesson. It seems that our continued misuse and abuse of our natural abundance is synonymous with industrial revolution and technological advances. When do we realize that this pressing environmental issue of climate change brought about by global warming needs a very serious attention and immediate action worldwide?

Ma'am Marie (leftmost), studying rainfall data at the Rainfall Monitoring Workshop

Sounds like a rousing speech from an environmental activist, but no, these thoughts came into my mind as I listened to the facilitators of the Rainfall Monitoring Workshop held at the Manila Observatory at the Ateneo de Manila University last August 22. As a science teacher, I have been telling my students these environmental issues and concerns for them to be aware and hopefully be motivated to get involved in finding solutions. It’s not difficult to convince these young minds to be environmentally concerned and be aware of the alarming and recent climate changes that have affected all of us. They have been witnesses to the ill effects of natural calamities that have brought detrimental effects to the community.

Living in a calamity prone area of San Miguel, the northernmost town of the Province of Bulacan, it is not surprising to see school children and local residents alike wading in muddy waters during rainy season. Preparing for a coming typhoon and putting things back in order after its visit, literally and figuratively, is a way of life for the townspeople. The local government and various community organizations have been collaborating to remedy the disastrous after effects of natural calamities like typhoons to the hardest hit areas of the locality. Sadly these efforts are not enough to address this perennial problem of the locality and the nearby municipalities. But aren’t preventive measures better than curative? An illness is best remedied when it is prevented. So is true of natural disasters.

Propelled with the global concern on climate change, the Smart Schools Program, in collaboration with the Manila Observatory and PAGASA has initiated “Project Rain Gauge,” an environmental awareness and disaster preparedness initiative through a seminar-workshop attended by representatives from the Smart Schools partners nationwide. As one of the participants of this educational and timely training, I had the firsthand experience of monitoring rainfall with the rain gauge when it incidentally rained in the afternoon during the workshop session. Moreover, the combined usefulness and convenience of technology enable us to establish rainfall patterns from a given set of rainfall data.

Inspired to share my learning experiences to my peers and students at San Miguel National High School, a mother school of DepEd-Division of Bulacan, we, the school’s Science Club adviser and I, initiated a rainfall monitoring activity for the entire school year. We commissioned our students to observe and monitor the rainfall in our locality. An improvised rain gauge patterned after PAGASA’s rain gauge model was installed in the open field of the school’s soccer field. Students were grouped and assigned on a weekly basis to monitor and record rainfall data in the locality. The members of each group were assigned a particular day of their scheduled week-long rainfall monitoring to ensure everybody takes part in the Project Rain Gauge. It motivated the students to perform their assigned tasks well when they were taught to enter their gathered data online through the project’s official website, Klima. In the website they were connected to other schools’ rainfall monitoring activity which they find interestingly similar to theirs.

Hopefully, this worthwhile and practical learning school activity will influence other members of the locality to participate and take part in rainfall monitoring and become environmentally aware and more responsible in preparing for and dealing with natural calamities like typhoons and flash floods. As part of Luzon’s rice granaries, the San Migueleños have to protect its main source of livelihood from the adversities of Mother Nature.

Every journey begins with a single step. Project Rain Gauge in schools is an initial stride to bring about environmental awareness and consequently disaster-preparedness. It won’t be for long that people will really start paying attention to the problems in their environment and do something about them before it’s too late. There is still hope.

Improvised rain gauge of San Miguel National High School	Young Earth Lovers (YELS) Club Officers together with their adviser, Mrs. Janel S. Mananghaya, installed the improvised Rain Gauge at the soccer field of San Miguel National High School	Students of San Miguel NHS learn basic rainfall data gathering and monitoring

(Published 1 October 2007, Smart Schools Program)

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