Physical Characteristics

Location
 
Morong lies in the northwestern part of Bataan.  Dinalupihan and Subic Bay bound the town to the north, to the south by Bagac, to the west by the South China Sea, and to the east by towns of Orani, Samal and Abucay.

Accessibility

The town is about 52.5 kilometers away from Balanga, 16 kilometers from SBMA Southgate, and 165 kilometers west of Manila. It is accessible by land linking the town to Bagac, Balanga City and to the south via Gov. Linao National Road and to Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) and Olongapo City to the north via Sabang-Mabayo Road (Morong Provincial Road) through the Zambales Highway.

Morong is accessible by air via Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA) located in SBMA. It serves as an alternate airport to decongest NAIA.

There are two tertiary ports, the Sabang and Mabayo ports. Passengers and commodities can be serviced via water through motorized boats.

Land Area

Morong, according to the Bureau of Lands, has a total land area of 21,910 hectares, which makes it the second largest municipality in the province, next to Bagac. It represents approximately 15% of the total land area of Bataan.

a. Breakdown of Area per Barangay

For planning purposes, the Municipality is using   assumed boundaries to establish   land area per Barangay.

b. General Land Use

Political Subdivision

The municipality is composed of five barangays namely Poblacion, Binaritan, Mabayo, Nagbalayong and Sabang.  The town proper is formed by Poblacion and part of Binaritan.

Population

       The municipality has a total population of 27,119 as of August 1, 2007 NSO census. This comprises about 4.1% of the total population of the province of Bataan; making is the least populated among the twelve municipalities.

2.5.1 Total and Household Population by Barangay (as of August 1, 2007)

CLIMATE

Morong has two distinct climates, the wet season which starts from May to October and the dry season which starts in November and lasts up to April.

TOPOGRAPHY

The municipality has a diverse and dynamic terrain from plateau and rolling hills and flatlands, bordered by forests, grassland and sea, and enriched by the streams and rivers.

Its terrain is generally flat along the coastal corridor. Rolling terrain predominates in the interior area as it approaches the mountains of Bataan.

ECONOMY

a. Marine/ Aquamarine

    Inland Fishing                                    

    
                 * About 250 motorized and 170 non-motorized bancas are being used for fishing.

     
b. Agricultural and Forest Resources

Since a large part of the municipality is covered by forests, raw materials that may be found in several parts of Morong include jungle vines, rattan, bamboo, buho – which can be used to manufacture baskets and other handicrafts and furniture both for local and export market.  Among the common variety of fruits/trees that grow in the municipality are mangoes, guava, cashew, tamarind, santol, banana, jackfruit, coconut and other local berries.  Local timber trees common and available in the forest are mahogany, acacia, tanguile, guijo, narra, and ipil-ipil, Other forest resources include cogon, honey, wild  boar, deer, wild carabaos and other wild plants and animals which are used by the local Aetas as sources of their livelihood.  

MAJOR WATERWAYS

Alupag Creek                Mauban Creek
Batalan River                Matiko Creek
Bayandati River            Minanga Creek
Bisay River                Morong River
Gantuan Creek            Suluin Creek
Marucdoc Creek            Tawawa River            

INFRASTRUCTURE AND SUPPORT FACILITIES

a. Road Network

                       Morong has a total road network of 63.27 kms with varying types of surfacing.

b. Transportation

 Because of its distance, there are no major bus lines from the nearby provinces of Zambales and Pampanga that ply the area. Access to the municipality is through the J. Linao National Road which links the town to the provincial capital of Balanga. The access to Morong-SBMA and vice versa is through the BTPI-SBMA road for private vehicles and Sabang-Mabayo road for public utility vehicles. The major means of transportation to and from this town to other municipalities are minibuses operated by the MORDOA, while tricycles and jeepneys are available within the town proper and nearby barangays.

c. Communication

  There is one Postal Office servicing the municipality while telegrams and telegraphs are serviced by the Bureau of Telecommunications.

     At present there is no existing telecommunication system within the municipality. Other means of communication is through two-way radios, cellular phones and internet.

d. Power

Power distribution is administered by the PENELCO, supplied by the National Power Corporation which operates three large power plants in the province, and which is all connected to the Luzon grid.

The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant which was supposed to generate 620 MW of power before it was mothballed is located in Morong. This power plant if converted and operated will provide sufficient power supply not only for Bataan but also for the rest of Luzon.

Power Rates

e. Water

    Water distribution is administered by the Municipal Water District which services the Poblacion area and some parts of Binaritan. Other barangays and sitios derive their water from either private or public artesian wells. However, there are still some families situated in the upland areas that get their water from natural springs in the mountainous areas.

 
System Facilities:
•    Main  I deepwell, 15Hp
•    Support – 1 deepwell, 1.6 Hp
•    45 cu.m elevated tank
•    2 fire hydrants

f. Solid Waste Disposal

         Two collection equipments are being utilized in collection of household and commercial establishment solid wastes, dumped in the municipality’s temporary open dump site in Mabayo. The present service area is four barangays covering around 60% of its households