In line with the strategic goal of the Baguio Water District on Watershed and Environmental Leadership, its Watershed Section personnel has completed the initial accounting of tree species within the 3,000-square meter portion of the Busol watershed in Barangay Ambiong, Aurora Hill as part of its Tree Inventory Program on 02 May 2023.
A total of fifty-four (54) trees were taken into inventory from the Muyong of the Philippine Statistics Authority Cordillera Administrative Region (PSA-CAR) through the BWD Adopt-a-Watershed Program. Of these trees, seven (7) species were identified namely, alnus (betulaceae), pine (pinacaea), cheery (prunusavium), eucalyptus (Eucalyptus blogobus), oak (quercus), tebbeg or fig (ficus), and bamboo (bambusa).
Moreover, the inventory team identified twenty-nine (29) mature trees from this total number, while the other twenty-five (25) as poles. Mature trees are trees that are close to maximum height, those exhibiting reduced shoot elongation, or those which start producing fruits and flowers. Meanwhile, a pole is a young tree stem between one and three (3) meters tall.
The partial digitized tree inventory activity, which started on 07 March 2023, commenced with the geotagging activities from the BWD’s Geographic Information System (GIS) Section. Geotagging is the process of adding geographical information to various media in the form of metadata. The data usually consists of coordinates like latitude and longitude, but may even include bearing, altitude, distance, characteristics, age, and place names.
BWD General Manager Engr. Salvador M. Royeca said the activity is a resumption of the Tree Inventory Program, which was conceived by the District in 2018, where BWD called upon the assistance of the academe but was held back due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The data acquired will be used to monitor the survival rate of mature trees including upcoming planting of seedlings, the establishment of an accurate tree inventory database, and develop a reference for management, education, and research for watershed conservation and protection.
In April 2019, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) through then Secretary Roy Cimatu, managed to conduct and complete a general tree inventory in the Summer Capital. According to the DENR data, Baguio has 2.5 million trees, which is insufficient for the City’s 370,000 local population.
