SP: Save the 770 remaining trees
LINGAYEN—Provincial board member Generoso Tulagan has filed a resolution to protect and nurture the 770 trees left standing along the stretch of Manila North Road (MNR) from the towns of Rosales to Sison.
Some 1,059 trees were earlier cut by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), on the strength of the permit issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), for the MNR widening project.
The cutting of trees was strongly opposed by several sectors, including environmentalist groups in and outside Pangasinan.
During the sanggunian panlalawigan regular session on June 2, Tulagan said “trees should be protected and nurtured because they contribute to a balanced ecosystem.”
Another board member, Alfonso Bince, Jr., supported the move, noting that the resolution could serve as a transition measure towards an ordinance prohibiting tree cutting along all of Pangasinan’s major thoroughfares.
On the other hand, the DENR, in a position paper signed by Regional Director Samuel Peñafiel, defended the permit it issued saying the cutting of trees was ‘necessary’ for the road widening project seen to spur development.
Peñafiel also pointed out that the felled trees will be replaced by thousands of seedlings. (PIO/RRB)
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