BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan said that the local government fully supports the plan of the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) and the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) to conduct a search for the century-old trees in the different parts of the city as part of the efforts of the concerned government agencies and the city to preserve and protect the remaining trees in the city.
The local chief executive claimed the inventory of the remaining pine trees by the environment department in close coordination with the local government is about to be completed to serve as one of the basis in the formulation of short, medium and long-term plans for the preservation and protection of the planted and surviving trees.
He pointed out that the search by the PENRO and CENRO will definitely serve as one of the strategies in drum-beating the support and efforts of concerned government agencies, the local government and the residents to continue working for the preservation and protection of the remaining trees in the city’s watershed and forest reservations and even in private properties.
“We really have to protect the remaining trees in the different parts of the city that is why we directed the personnel of our City Environment and Parks Management Office to extend utmost assistance to the personnel of the environment department to fastrack the conduct of the required inventory of the pine trees in our city. We also have to make sure that the dead and infected trees will also be cleared so that the healthy ones will be spared from being infected that could result to the spread of the infestation that will be detrimental to the survival of most of the trees,” Domogan stressed.
He added that individuals who can locate century-old trees in the different parts of the city will be provided with incentives to be agreed upon by concerned government agencies and the local government to encourage people to value the presence of trees in various parts of the city.
He underscored one of the major thrusts of the local government is for the aggressive implementation of regreening programs geared towards improving the forest cover of the city’s forest reservations leading to the improved condition of existing watersheds.
According to him, there is no factual basis to the perception of the public in the social media that there has been wayward cutting of trees considering as there is a prescribed process in the issuance of emergency cutting permits which the local chief executive is authorized to issue and that even the environment department is being provided with the records of the trees that are subject of emergency tree cutting permits for monitoring and other purposes.
He explained that dead trees, infected ones and trees that pose serious threat to life and limb are the only ones that are covered by the emergency tree cutting permits being issued by the local government that is why people should first look into the circumstances on the issued permits before coming out with their conclusions because even the assigned personnel tasked to inspect the trees being applied for the issuance of emergency tree cutting permits are circumspect in coming out with their recommendations.
By Dexter A. See
Banner photo by Armando M. Bolislis