'Globe Adventure Taal' set on Nov. 26

Run, bike, kayak Taal! And discover the hidden beauty of the gem of Batangas. After the successful Team Energy Kayak Taal in 2010, Pusod is organizing the Globe Adventure Taal -- an adventure race that includes running, biking and kayaking to be held on November 26, 2011, the second anniversary of the unanimous approval of the Taal Volcano Protected Landscape (TVPL) Management Plan by its 130+-member Management Board. The venue will be at Pusod’s newly established Taal Lake Conservation Center (TLCC) in Sitio Lipute, Mataasnakahoy, Batangas. In partnership with Globe Telecoms as the name sponsor this year, the race aims to mobilize action for better water quality. It intends to gain widespread awareness of the TVPL Management Plan, to solicit private support and initiative for its implementation and particularly to ensure strict monitoring of water quality for Taal Lake. The proceeds will support an e-governance project for widespread information access on the status of conservation actions through SMS and public-accessible computer portals containing the PAMB’s databases. Tanggol Kalikasan, Inc. will assist in the implementation of this innovative experiment in democracy for the governance of an ecosystem. Pusod is also proud to partner with Lipa City biking enthusiasts Team Ganit and the Philippine Kayak Association in organizing the race. The funds raised from the Team Energy Kayak Taal held last November 2010 enabled Pusod to: 1. delineate the remaining forests in Laurel and Talisay; 2. organize a Real Estate Developers meeting to encourage the allocation of lands for private forests; 3. provide additional support in the Protected Area Management Board strengthening thru the Lakbay Aral in Twin Lakes of Balinsasayao -Danao and Apo Island; and 4. publish and disseminate the TVPL Management Plan. The fishkill in May and June this year has prompted a focus on water quality and has mobilized the PAMB’s Fisheries Subcommittee, Tourism Subcommittee and Ways and Means Subcommittee to take concrete steps in implementing the plan. The Taal Lake Task Force, a Provincial Government-organized body tasked by the PAMB to enforce laws in the TVPL and which continues to clear the lake of illegal cages, vows to enforce against piggeries dumping wastes directly into the rivers in the near future. Scientists have declared that the lake turned eutrophic in the last 20 years, an alarming state of affairs considering that lakes take a long time to respond to conservation interventions. It needs to return to its natural oligotrophic state with strong conservation measures. (Press Release)