DENR surpasses 100,000-ha tree-planting target

The National Greening Program of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has claimed to have surpassed its tree-planting goal in 2011 and said that it is likely to beat its target for 2012. 

 

The program had set a goal of planting 50 million seedlings over 100,000 hectares; according to Environment Secretary Ramon J. P. Paje, as of December 31, 2011, “the seedlings planted totaled 93,262,725 covering 128,696 hectares and involving 694,443 planters, including partners from the private sector.”

 

That is a 186% higher result for seedlings and 128% for hectarage, exceeding the agency’s expectations and perhaps indicating the public’s enthusiasm for environmental defense.“We want reforestation efforts to succeed,” says Paje. “This is the reason why we are harnessing the resources of everyone. NGP is not a program of the DENR alone, but of the entire nation that cuts across all sectors of society.”

 

The seedlings came from indigenous, endemic and native forest tree species in protected areas as well as a mix of forest tree species, fruit-bearing tree species and other horticultural crops in production areas. The Ecosystem Research and Development Bureau (ERDB), which continues to conduct an inventory of indigenous species and has generated information on relevant data such as climatic, soil and elevation requirements to guide NGP participants, led the gradual shift from exotic to indigenous tree species.

 

The aims of the NGP include strengthening the Tree Improvement Program (TIP), promoting the use of organic biofertilizers and establishing nurseries for plants, many of them on the campuses of 12 state universities and colleges working with the DENR on the program. 

 

Paje says that the NGP will be transparent every step of the way through third-party monitoring that uses GPS-based geo-tagging for stricter internal controls. — TJD, GMA News