Water System for Dapitan

Rizal held the title of expert surveyor (perito agrimensor), which he obtained
from Ateneo. He supplemented his training as a surveyor by reading engineering books. In
Dapitan, he applied his knowledge in engineering by constructing a system of waterworks in order to
furnish clean water to the townspeople.

Without any aid from the government, he succeeded in giving good water system to Dapitan.

An American engineer, Mr. H. F. Cameron, praised Rizal's engineering feat in the following
words:

Another famous and well-known water supply is that of Dapitan, Mindanao, designed and
constructed by Dr. Rizal during his banishment in that municipality by the Spanish authorities...
this supply comes from a little mountain stream across the river from Dapitan and follows the
contour of the country for the whole distance. When one considers that Doctor Rizal had no
explosives with which to block the hard rocks and no resources save his own ingenuity, one cannot
help but honor a man, who against adverse conditions, had the courage and tenacity to construct the
aqueduct which had for its bottom the fluted tiles from the house roofs, and was covered with
concrete made from limed burned from the sea coral. The length of this aqueduct is several
kilometers, and it winds in and out among the rocks and is carried across gullies in bamboo pipes
upheld by rocks or brick piers to the distribution reservoir.

Community Projects for Dapitan

When Rizal arrived in Dapitan, he decided to improve it, to the best of his God-given
talents, and to awaken the civic consciousness of its people. He wrote to Fr. Pastells: " I want to
do all I can do for this town."

Aside from constructing the towns first water system, he spent many months in draining the
marshes in order to get rid of malaria that infested Dapitan.

The P500 which an English patient paid him was used by him to equip the town with its
lighting system which consist of coconut oil lamps placed in dark streets of Dapitan. Electric
lighting was unknown then in the Philippines not until 1894 when Manila saw the first
electric lights.

The beautification and remodeling of the town plaza with the help of Father Sanchez
enhances the beauty as jokingly remarked that it could "rival the best in Europe". In front of the
church, Rizal and Fr. Sanchez made a huge relief map of Mindanao out of earth, stones, and grass.
This map still adorns the town plaza of Dapitan.
As an engineer, Rizal applied his knowledge through the waterworks system he
constructed in Dapitan. Going back to his academic life, Rizal obtained the title of expert
surveyor (perito agrimensor) from the Ateneo Municipal. From his practical knowledge
as agrimensor, he widened his knowledge by reading engineering-related books. As a
result, despite the inadequacy of tools at hand, he successfully provided a good water
system in the province.

COMMUNITY PROJECTS FOR DAPITAN When Rizal arrived in Dapitan, he decided

to improve it to the best of his God-given talents and to awaken the civic consciousness
of its people. Aside from constructing the town’s first water system, he spent many
months draining the marshes in order to get rid of malaria that infested Dapitan. As a
European-trained physician, he knew that malaria is spread by the mosquitoes which
thrive in swampy places