7M hectares of Philippine land are forested and that’s bad news The country has been vulnerable to massive flooding linked to deforestation. The coronavirus pandemic is also a catastrophe that arose from populations occupying wild animal habitats. BY KAROL ILAGAN May 12, 2021 | 02:04:00 PM
Key findings:
Forest loss persists in the Philippines even with a log ban and protection laws in place.
Forest cover has remained the same since the first Aquino administration as losses in some parts of the country have eclipsed gains in others.
The Mimaropa region – covering Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan – has seen the worst deforestation in recent years.
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Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(MANILA BULLETIN)
This is a 95-percent accomplishment of its 2020 target of 47,166 hectares under the Enhanced National Greening Program (ENGP), the government’s flagship reforestation initiative.
“We are on track to reach or even exceed the 100-percent mark as we are now gradually increasing targets for plantation establishments,” DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu said.
“We are also doubling our efforts in protection and maintenance to increase the survival rates in plantation sites established in prior years,” he said.
From 2017 to 2019, protection and maintenance efforts have been undertaken in some 369,371 ENGP plantations.
These were accomplished with the involvement of some 5,876 peoples’ organizations (POs) as partners.