DENR permits cutting of decade-old trees
CARMEN TO SISON
LINGAYEN—Sorry, but the trees have to go for progress.
This was the gist of the position paper submitted by the regional director of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) submitted to the Sanggunian Panlalawigan on the controversial cutting of 1,829 trees along the Manila North Road along Sison to Rosales towns.
“It is necessary that the affected trees be removed as they are considered as road hazards due to their proximity to the road,” wrote DENR Regional Executive Director Samuel Peňafiel. “Such is the necessary consequence of development,” he added in his paper addressed to Vice Gov. Jose Ferdinand Calimlim Jr as the presiding officer.
But Peňafiel said, “All is not lost with the removal of the affected trees as thousands of seedlings shall be planted as replacement for the trees cut.”
He further justified the cutting of the decade-old trees by saying that the young trees “have higher carbon absorption capabilities as they grow and shall provide more forest cover.”
Several members of the civil society raised howl over the tree-cutting trooped to the provincial board, including running priest Fr. Robert Reyes, to protest the cutting.
Green Convergence, representing environmental organizations, had told the provincial board that it wanted to save the remaining trees along the MacArthur highway specifically those that had not been cut within the period prescribed in the permit given to the DPWH by the DENR.
In a separate position paper, the DPWH, thru District Engr. Emmanuel Diaz of the 3rd District Engineering Office in Rosales, echoed Secretary Rogelio Singson’s pronouncement that ,” Unless stopped by the courts, we will proceed with the widening since the road right-of-way is owned by the DPWH and we also have our mandate to improve the quality and safety of our national roads….”
On Nov. 8, 2011 a permit was granted to the DPWH for the cutting of 321 trees and for earth balling of 92 saplings. Upon inventory, a total of 1,829 trees and 107 saplings were identified as affected by the project.
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