The Wonders of Baguio City Plateau: A Research

Group 1:
Abaclod, Helaina
Cabiao, Mikyla
Paciteng, Janna

I. INTRODUCTION

Baguio, officially the City of Baguio, is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Cordillera Administrative Region,
Philippines. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines", owing to its cool climate since the city is located
approximately 4,810 feet (1,470 meters) above mean sea level, often cited as 1,540 meters (5,050 feet) in the Luzon
tropical pine forests Eco region, which also makes it conducive for the growth of mossy plants, orchids and pine trees, to
which it attributes its other moniker as the "City of Pines". It is geographically located within Benguet, serving as the
provincial capital from 1901 to 1916, but has since been administered independently from the province following its
conversion into a chartered city. The city is the center of business, commerce, and education in northern Luzon, as well as
the seat of government of the Cordillera Administrative Region. According to the 2020 census, Baguio has a population of
366,358. 

II. GEOMORPHOLOGY, TOPOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE

A. GEOMORPHOLOGY
Baguio City is built in a plateau, a plain on an elevated space. In simple terms it is a long, flat and wide landform
that is found on a high landform like a mountain. Plateaus can be formed by a number of processes, including upwelling
of volcanic magma, extrusion of lava, and erosion by water and glaciers. The Baguio District area is characterized by an
early stage of geomorphic development as represented by rugged terrain, abundance of waterfalls and deeply incised
valleys (Geohazard Assessment Report, 2016). The elevation within the District ranges from 500 to 2,252 m above main
sea level (amsl). The city is characterized by relatively steep slopes and incised valleys. Further, river systems are
characterized by sub-dendritic to dendritic drainage patterns with deeply incised, V-shaped valleys. These are the Agno,
Bued, and Naguilian Rivers. Consequently, the main tributaries of the Agno River are the Ambalanga, Labey, and Albian
Rivers. The various geomorphological units comprising the city include mountain ridges, peak, and valleys such as the
Cordillera Central mountain range wherein the city itself has been built. Mountain ridges are series of connected and
aligned mountains with long and narrow upland with steep sides.

B. TOPOGRAPHY
Baguio City has a mountainous topography. Elevation ranges from 900 meters along the Bued River to 1,600
meters at Pacdal. Majority of the slopes (about 78% of total area) are gentle to moderately steep with slope of less than
30%. Only about 22% of city’s land area has steep slopes greater than 30%. (Baguio City Ecological Profile, 2018)

C. CLIMATE
The city’s climate is characterized by two pronounced regimes: a dry season from November to April, and a rainy
season from May to October. Baguio city’s rainfall record of 1168.1 mm in24 h on July 14–15, 1911 (Jennings, 1950) is
among the highest in the world. From 1950–2003, the average annual rainfall in Baguio was 3648 mm (Saldivar-Sali &
Einstein, 2007). In October 2009, the rainfall in the city was extremely high due to a tropical cyclone, rendering a rainfall
record of 462 mm for that month, almost four times the monthly average (Papa, 2009). Rainfall is generally higher in
Baguio than in the rest of the country: for instance, it receives twice the volume of rainfall usually experienced in Manila
(Saldi-var-Sali & Einstein, 2007).As a hill station, Baguio city is famed for its cool climate owing to its elevation from
950 to 1650 m. Most of the developed areas are on a 1500 m high plateau in the Cordillera mountain range of Northern
Luzon. Baguio city is, on the average, 8 °C cooler than the lowlands. Its average temperature ranges from 15 °C to 23 °C,
seldom exceeding 26 °C even during the warmer months (Saldivar-Sali & Einstein, 2007). It is generally lower at the end
and beginning of the year; the lowest temperature of 6.3 °C was re-corded on January 18, 1961, while the city’s all-time
high temperature of 30.4 °C was recorded on March 15, 1988 (Basilan &Vicente, 2008)

III. Photos of Landforms and Bodies of Water found in Baguio City

Before ( 1900’S) Present

 Bued River
Images from: Wikipedia

Cordillera Range
Image from: Wikipedia

Balili River (present) Mount Mirador (1910s)

Image from: Wikipedia Image from: Wikipedia

- Most physiographic features of the area are the fault of geological structure that expresses the operation of
subsequent forces such as weathering.

IV. ANALYSIS

A. DETERMINE IF THE ROCKS FOUND IN BAGUIO UNDERGO WEATHERING

Yes, the rocks found in Baguio undergoes weathering. A great example of this is the Klondyke formation found
along Kennon Road that went through chemical weathering. Nesbitt and Young did a study on post-Archean erogenous
sedimentary rocks taken from different source rock terrains with varying degrees of chemical weathering, sorting, and
digenesis. One sample that they studied is the clastic rocks from an oceanic island arc source like the Klondyke Formation
in the Baguio District had La/Th values ranging from *4 to 15 in the Chemical Index of Alteration(CIA), proving that the
Klondyke Formation went through a chemical weathering. Also according to Cullers R., “The sedimentary rocks of the
Klondyke Formation were probably derived from the erosion and deposition of geochemically-less fractionated igneous
lithology having oceanic island arc signatures.”

Klondyke Formation
Image from: researchgate

B. HOW DID THE MORPHOLOGY AFFECT THE FORMATION OF ITS LANDFORMS AND BODIES OF
WATER
Sedimentary rocks of the western periphery are folded into north and northeast structures whereas those of the
southwestern portions are controlled by the north-easterly aligned faults. These rocks units generally dip to the north
following roughly the slope of the Cordillera Mountains as homocline in the northwestern part. The orientation and
distribution of these units are produced by the north trending faults or controlled by northwesterly tectonic lines.

Therefore, the various geomorphological units comprising the city which includes mountain ridges, peak, and
valleys are a product of the uplift and subsidence movements, faulting and other geological processes acting on the earth
crust.

C. HOW DOES THE ROCKS UNDERGO WEATHERING? BASED ON ITS TOPOGRAPHY & CLIMATE
Because of Baguio City’s mountainous topography, the rate of weathering becomes faster. A land's elevation and
slope of its surface or topography affect the weathering rates of rocks. Rocks found at higher elevations will weather most
often from ice wedging than rocks at lower elevations. “The rate of weathering on mountainsides and steep slopes occurs
more rapidly than rocks located on flatter land surfaces.”(Pollard T., 2002)

Rainfall and temperature can affect the rate in which rocks weather. A warm, wet climate will produce the highest
rate of weathering. Because of the climate in Baguio which consists of two pronounced regimes which are dry season and
rainy season, the rate of chemical weathering is much higher because of the high temperatures and greater rainfall. Also,
rocks in tropical regions exposed to abundant rainfall and hot temperatures weather much faster than similar rocks
residing in cold, dry regions.

D. DETERMINE WHICH HAZARDS SHOULD BE OBSERVED AT THE LOCATION

There are a lot of flood prone areas. Some parts of the city encounters flooding specifically portions within
barangay;Lower Rock Quarry, City Camp Proper, Guisad Surong Irisan, Lourdes Subdivision Extension and City Camp
Central.

Faults are also a hazard. The faults, can be a factor in the seismic activities experienced in the Baguio La Trinidad
Itogon Sablan Tuba Tublay (BLISST) area through the crustal movement.

It emerged that Baguio faces serious issues with regard to climate conditions, the vulnerability of pine trees to
landslides, its struggle to prevent rapid population growth, and the regional ban on mining development projects. Baguio city
also has a high risk of earthquake disasters.

V. CONCLUSION

Weathering had a major role in the formation of the plateau in which Baguio City is built. Weathering describes
the breaking down or dissolving of rocks and minerals on the surface of the Earth. Water, ice, acids, salts, plants, animals,
changes in temperature and human activities are all agents of weathering. Once a rock has been broken down, a process
called erosion transports the bits of rock and mineral away. And based on our research, it was through this process that the
plateau and other geomorphic units comprising the city was formed. The uplift and subsidence movements, faulting and
other geological processes acting on the earth crust also helped with the formation of the landforms. Not only this but the
climate and topography of the city also had major effects on the process of weathering that formed the city through the
years. An example of this is the parts of Baguio atop a limestone formation that is dissolving as a result of weathering due
to exposure of running water, which explains the numerous sinkholes underneath some parts of the city.

References:

Wikipedia contributors. (2021, November 11). Baguio. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 18:31, November
13, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Baguio&oldid=1054743653

Lee, S. (2010). Landslide Susceptibility Mapping using Probability and Statistics Models in Baguio City, Philippines, p.2.
From
https://www.isprs.org/proceedings/2005/ISRSE/html/papers/407.pdf

https://www.baguio.gov.ph/sites/default/files/city_planning_and_development_office/downloadable_forms/Ecological
%20Profile%202018%20%28Chapter%202%29.pdf

Estoque, Ronald & Murayama, Yuji. (2011). City Profile: Baguio. Cities. 30. -. 10.1016/j.cities.2011.05.002.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229094398_City_Profile_Baguio

Dimalanta C. (2008, December). Volume17, Issue4 of Island Arc. Pages 432-442.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1440-1738.2008.00635.x#

Engielle Mae Paguican. The structure, morphology, and surface texture of debris avalanche deposits field and remote
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Clermont-Ferrand II, 2012. English.
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/file/index/docid/794267/filename/Paguican-2012CLF22255.pdf

Tam, Tomas & Jr, Graciano & Gallegos, Estephanie Gera & Dimalanta, Carla & Zhou, Mei-Fu & Suzuki, Shigeyuki.
(2008). Rare Earth Element Geochemistry of the Zigzag ‐ Klondyke Sedimentary Rock Formations: Clues to the
Evolution of the Baguio Mineral District (Luzon), Philippines. Resource Geology. 55. 217 - 224. 10.1111/j.1751-
3928.2005.tb00243.x.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229536200_Rare_Earth_Element_Geochemistry_of_the_Zigzag_-
_Klondyke_Sedimentary_Rock_Formations_Clues_to_the_Evolution_of_the_Baguio_Mineral_District_Luzon_Philippin
es

Members:
Abaclod, Helaina
Cabiao, Mikyla
Paciteng, Janna S.

EVALUATION

GROUP MEMBERS AVERAGE

Abaclod, Helaina 40
Cabiao, Mikyla 45
Paciteng, Janna S. 50