By Leonardo Micua

 

IN my chance meeting inside a barbershop with the manager of Sonshine Radio Dagupan, Jay Mendoza, also outgoing president of KBP Pangasinan chapter, he and I talked about a range of topics while were waiting for our turn to the barber’s seat.

On top of our conversation was none other than the cutting of 64 fully-grown trees at the back of the provincial capitol to give way to the construction of a Reflective Pool-Interactive Fountain, which I understand is a gift to the province by the Cayetano senator-siblings, Pia and Allan.

While Jay and myself admit we are not against the construction of a Reflective Pool-Interactive Fountain because it can help promote tourism in the Capitol grounds, however, we agreed that such a project would have been more promising if done in a place where there are no or just a few trees would be sacrificed.

Promising to discuss  issue more lengthily in his radio program, Jay actually revealed his pro-environment mindset like mine who still appreciates and values the enduring poem “Trees” by (Alfred) Joyce Kilmer, the first stanza of which reads: “ I think that I shall never see a poem as lovely as a tree.”

Jay believes the project can be done without sacrificing those big number of trees that were planted decades ago during the administrations of past governors of Pangasinan, notably Conrado F. Estrella, Francisco Q. Duque Jr., Cipriano B. Primicias Jr., Aguedo F. Agbayani and even Rafael M. Colet, Oscar M. Orbos, Victor E. Agbayani and even the Espino father and son Spine and Pogi.

Environmental activists riled against the chopping of the trees planted by past governors in one fell swoop by the present governor, Ramon Guico III.

Having been planted decades back, those trees undoubtedly are already founded on a stream of sentimentalism and emotions to our present generation, they who are mute witnesses today to the history and development of Pangasinan.

Here’s some trivia on the chopped trees. The World War II war relics put on display under some of those cut trees, among these were two American Sherman tanks, two Japanese Zero fighter planes and an anti-aircraft battery purposely to make generations remember how it was like when the liberation of Luzon started with the Lingayen Landing.  That was the project of the administration of Governor Tito Primiciias.

We were told that these war relics will be retained but will be transferred to another site. Hopefully, not far from the present Pangasinan Veterans Park, otherwise the latter would be rendered irrelevant.

Jay believes that other than the back of the capitol building and within the Pangasinan Veterans Park, there are other sites where the Reflective Pool-Interactive Fountain can be placed, where there are no trees or fewer trees to be sacrificed.

He pointed to the area in front of the Capitol building as a possible ideal location, where the Reflective Pool-Interactive Fountain could blend well to the magnificent lights and color of the century-old Pangasinan provincial capitol building, making it more resplendent to view at night.

“Sayang ang mga yon (trees), uttered Jay who admitted only learned of the ‘massacre’ of the 64 trees when pictures of the stumps of the fallen trees were uploaded on Facebook.

Jay still finds no justifiable reason why the 64 trees had to be cut, not even the fact that the Department of Environment and Resources gave the Guico administration the green light to do it in exchange for a pledge to plant 3,200 tree seedlings in different sites in the province.

From my end, aside from serving as natural shades on hot summer days to hundreds who promenade in the capitol grounds, those trees could have provided natural protection to the capitol building in cases of gale winds from the Lingayen Gulf or a sand storm from the beach.

But since what was done with the imprimatur of DENR can no longer be undone, the people of Pangasinan  for now, can only monitor the provincial government’s plans to plant those 3,200 tree seedlings as promised and pray that these will grow into robust trees.

Our conversation was cut short when the barber called Jay.

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