THE last and final stage of the widening of the Manila North Road (MNR) from Rosales to Sison in Pangasinan cannot proceed because more than 700 trees remain standing along the highway.

According to Pangasinan Third Highway Engineer Emmanuel Riboroso whose office is based in Tumana, Rosales told newsmen that the moratorium on the cutting of trees jointly declared by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) remains in effect.

Consequently, the widening of the Rosales to Sison portion of the MNR, which stretches from Manila to Laoag, remains unfinished.

He told newsmen during the KBP Forum last week that in compliance with the moratorium, no tree has been cut or felled even if one-third are already dead as result of the girdling of the trees.

As agreed upon by the two agencies and non-government organizations, only dead trees that fall on the concrete road on its own weight and block the flow of traffic along MNR will be cut and removed.

The live trees continue to be pruned and their branches trimmed.

The 700 trees were part of the 1,700 trees standing along the MNR when DPWH began its road widening in late 2013. More than 1,000 trees were already cut when the permit granted by DENR regional office to a contractor to cut the trees lapsed in February 2014.

Environmentalists, including the Pangasinan provincial government, had petitioned Environment Secretary Ramon Paje not to renew the permit of the contractor. (Leonardo Micua)

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