Mayor brands NGP, CHARM reforest projects waste of funds

BAUKO, Mountain Province – Mayor Abraham B. Akilit said the implementation of reforestation projects under the National Greening Program (NGP) and the 2nd Cordillera Highland Agriculture Resources Management Project (CHARMP) is just a waste of public funds because of the absence of proper planning and sustainability.

“While it is true that we will be able to plant millions of trees in denuded mountains, there is no clear guarantee that all of the planted trees will survive and serve their purpose in the future considering the presence of factors that will greatly affect their growth,”Akilit said.

He said failure of the project implementers to consider the establishment of forest firewalls and greenbelt areas casts doubts on the sustainability of the reforestation projects where public funds are being spent.

            

Akilit pointed out that what should have been done by the environmental experts in the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) which is handling the NGP and the Department of Agriculture (DA) which is administering the CHARMP funds was to determine the buffer zones and greenbelt areas that were supposed to be the priority areas for reforestation through the planting of fire-resistant plants such as those with broad leaves in order to prevent the occurrence of forest fires during the dry season that always destroy and kill the planted trees.

            

“Fire is the major problem of our reforestation projects because it puts to waste all our sacrifices in planting trees, thus, it should be the first to be effectively and efficiently addressed by our programs,” he said, citing that after the buffer zones and greenbelt areas shall have been planted with fire-resistant plants, then agro-forestry should be done by the people living in the communities to guarantee that the planted trees will be preserved and protected.

            

Aside from contributing much to the overall efforts to preserve and protect the environment, Akilit pointed out that the establishment of agro-forestry zones within communities will also sustain the availability of sources of food for them, thus, they will help in all-out efforts to protect the forests since it is t6he major source of their food.

            

He explained it is not yet too late for concerned government agencies to re-assess and re-study the on-going reforestation projects and introduce the needed changes so that the millions of pesos of taxpayer’s money will not go to waste and ruin the aspirations of the present and future generations to enjoy the fruits of the relentless efforts to preserve and protect the watersheds and forests.

            

Akilit is a staunch advocate for the preservation and protection of the watersheds in the different parts of the Cordillera, especially the Mount Data National Park, which is the headwaters of the four major river systems, Chico, Agno, Abra and Magat rivers, that provide water for lowland communities through a holistic approach that will involve the active participation of both the communities protecting the watersheds and the lowland communities who directly benefit from the water coming from the watersheds.

            

He said the municipal government will initiate reforestation activities within the coverage of the town’s 22 barangays to set an example on how to undertake an effective and efficient reforestation program so that other agencies and local governments in the different parts of the region could emulate the same in order to value the funds that are being used for such projects. -- Dexter A. See