Climate
The location of Loreto has two climate types. Its eastern part climate classification is Type II Modified Coronas which characteristically has no dry season “with a very pronounced maximum rain period”1. Its western portion is classified under Type IV Modified Coronas where “rainfall is more or less evenly distributed throughout the year”. In the 2009 meteorological data of the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), the municipality’s annual cumulative rainfall is at 1,555.75 millimeters (mm) with an average rainfall of 129.65 mm. The month of May is considered the hottest month with a mean temperature of 28.1℃ and January is the coldest at 26.0℃.
Mineral and Other Resources
Loreto has two major rivers called Umayam with an area of 431.83 hectares and Ihawan with 162.87 hectares, and both are tributaries of the Agusan River. Aside from those major rivers, there are smaller rivers that traverse the municipality such as Anahawan, Tigbawan, Sabud, and Danuman.
Among the municipalities in the province of Agusan del Sur, Loreto is the only municipality known for non-metallic limestone resources. Bat guano is said to be one of the most abundant mineral resources in the municipality, and large quantities of it can be found in Sitio Moto, Poblacion. This mineral is primarily used in the fertilizer industry.
Natural Hazard and Constraint
Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (MDRRMC) saw a rising trend of flash floods over the years. During the rainy season, the municipality experiences floods around five times a year. The biggest flood recorded was in 1982, 1986, and 2013.
The Provincial Government of Agusan del Sur (PGAS) assessed the municipality and the result showed that Loreto is “highly sensitive to flooding hazard” based on some factors including its slope, vegetative cover, and proximity to rivers. PGAS estimates revealed that 29% of the municipality’s total population or 11,770 are prone to flooding to some degree.
Schools are the most prone to flooding at low exposure levels. About 9 kilometers of the road network are at a high to a very high level of flood exposure. The infrastructures considered to be in critical positions are churches, pre-and post-harvest facilities, and communication towers.
The graph below shows the percentage of “Flood Susceptibility” and “Landslide Susceptibility” of the areas in the municipality.
Out of 185,0541 (100%) hectares of land prone to natural hazards (flooding and landslide), 2.13% is under the code VHF (Very High Flood which is equivalent to 4,108 hectares, 3.45% HF (High Flood) or 6,400 hectares, 4.18% MF (Moderate Flood) or 7,514 hectares, 2.09% LF (Low Flood) or 3,602 hectares, 32.13% HL (High Landslide) or 59,460, 27.96% ML (Moderate Landslide) or 51,744 and 28.06% LL (Low Landslide) or 51,931 hectares.
Reference: Loreto, Agusan del Sur MPDO, CBMS 2018