NOV 27 – The City of Baguio has become the first local government in the Philippines to have its entire boundaries surveyed using LiDAR Scanning Technology for urban development and disaster risk mitigation purposes, as announced in the press conference regarding the project last November 27, 2018.

 

The LGU-funded project was made in partnership with AB Surveying and Development (ABSD), the first consultancy firm to introduce aerial LiDAR technology for commercial surveying.

 

“This project gives the city one of the most important decision making tools for city-wide planning and development.” ABSD founder and general manager Engr. Antonio Botor said in a statement. LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) technology, currently used by the country’s most advanced surveying company, features multiple laser points in accurately mapping large areas. The LiDAR-generated map of Baguio City can be used for infrastructure planning, road network management, flood mapping, tax mapping, disaster risk reduction, and even for potential investors as aid for scouting viable business locations.

 

The project will also greatly benefit the revenue collection offices of the city. The LiDAR generated maps will aid the City Assessor’s Office in identifying undeclared properties that could not be subjected to physical inspection. “The LiDAR mapping technology will surely make our job easier, especially in checking the undeclared buildings in the different barangays. We hope it will also improve our efficiency in working out the declaration of buildings for taxation purposes that will help in improving the real property tax collections of the local government,” said City Assessor Maria Almaya Addawe.

 

“The entire mapping of the city of Baguio only took two days and another three weeks of post fieldwork processing through this technology, a feat that would have been unimaginable if we are still using conventional surveying methods. The full appreciation of LiDAR’s use in our modern world is limited only by our imagination”, Botor added.

 

For the video documentation of this event, check out the video below.