Protected, logging areas set

Business World Online

Posted on July 10, 2011 11:33:02 PM

A SENATE body is considering a proposal that will identify forest areas as reservations and those where logging will be allowed as part of a sustainable forest management measure.

This was the initial agreement in a technical working group (TWG) meeting of the committee on environment and natural resources on Thursday, wherein representatives of civil service organizations and agencies agreed to redefine forest areas into protection and production as proposed by several measures on sustainable forest and ecosystem management.

Logging, mining and other natural resource extraction activities, according to the TWG, will be banned in protected areas.

“Only 24% of the Philippines’ forest land amounting to 6.43 million hectares has been left in our forests,” Lucille Karen M. Isberto of environmental group Haribon Foundation said in the meeting, referring to the protection forest coverage.

On the other hand, logging, mining and other forms of natural resource exploitation will be allowed in production forest areas.

For his part, Antonio Carandang, director of the College of Forestry and Natural Resources at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños, said that the forestry law has to be updated to address the concerns of climate change, poverty and existing international agreements.

“We need to address our needs without sacrificing our ecology and our environment. [We should develop a] mechanism that will identify, delineate and manage our forests,” said Dave Torres, chairman of the TWG and the representative of Senator Juan Miguel M. Zubiri, chairman of the committee.

Haribon Foundation’s definition as adopted by the TWG defines production forest lands as those devoted to the production of timber and/or non-forest products or establishment of industrial tree plantations, tree farms, communal forest and agro-forestry.

The proposal will effectively amend Executive Order 23 (EO), issued by President Benigno S. C. Aquino III on Feb. 1, which banned the cutting and harvesting of timber in natural and residual forests nationwide.

EO 23 declares a moratorium on the cutting and harvesting of trees in the natural and residual forest and creating the anti-illegal logging task force.

The fiat was issued after widespread flooding in Bicol in December that was blamed on denuded forests.

Clarinda Mendoza, committee secretary, said that the delineation of production and protection forests is key to sustainable forest management.

“Executive Order 23 totally bans logging which affects our [wood] business sector. Through this bill, the business sector can do [sustainable] logging,” she said.

Meanwhile, protection forest, as defined in the TWG recommendation, covers natural and restored forest including areas identified as key biodiversity area, critical habitats, freshwater swamps and marshes.

The definition will amend Presidential Decree (PD) 705, or the Revised Forestry Code of the Philippines, issued by then president Ferdinand E. Marcos in 1975.

PD 705 encourages multiple use of forest lands for goods and services. It rationalizes establishment of wood-processing plants. It also adopts policies to classify forest lands.

Meanwhile, the bill also proposes changes to the Forestry Management Bureau in the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Under the proposal, the agency shall have a continuing watershed program with the support of local government units.

The committee report has yet to be finalized.

Meanwhile, authorities seized late last week 1,600 pieces of tropical hardwood logs in Laak, Compostela Valley estimated at P3.4 million.

The joint team of the military’s anti-illegal logging task force and the regional office of the DENR, which seized the items at a checkpoint, believed the logs came from Loreto, Agusan del Sur.

The logs were later transported to Tagum City, Davao del Norte.

“Laak is very far from Tagum City so [the local government units] were such a big help for us,” said Jim O. Sampulna, regional executive director of the DENR-Region 11.

Mr. Sampulna said the consignee, which the DENR did not identify, is facing charges of violating EO 23 and PD 705.

Hardwood tree species come from natural forests, which are covered under EO 23.

The city government of Tagum will process the smuggled logs into lumber or finished products such as furniture, desks and tables for the Department of Education.

Excluding the latest apprehension, the DENR said P1.27 million worth of forest products were recorded confiscated since EO 23 was issued.

Four months ago, authorities also apprehended 50.46 cubic meters of lauan logs with an estimated value of P328,000 loaded on an Isuzu cargo truck in Monkayo, Compostela Valley.

In February, the regional DENR sacked four of its officials for failing to implement the total log ban ordered by Malacañang. -- R. R. Dinglasan and J. B. Escovilla