The Department of Environment and Natural Resources lauded efforts of the Negros Oriental provincial government to establish pocket forests in the province and address the dwindling forest cover to mitigate climate change.

Negros Oriental’s forest cover is now only 28,000 hectares, with the bigger volume in Mt. Talinis , and the rest in Manjuyod, Bindoy, Guihulngan and Tayasan areas.

The existing forest cover is five percent of the entire land area of the province, Community and Natural Resources Officer, Charlie Fabre, said.  The aim is to reach between 20 to 25 percent forest cover in Negros Oriental.

Fabre suggests the concentration of tree-planting and tree growing efforts in one or two sites to have an impact, as in Ayungon and Bindoy, where 1,500 hectares were planted to different species of trees last year under the national greening program.

Gov. Roel Degamo initiated the project as part of his centerpiece program on health, education and environment, livelihood and peace and order or HELP. Its  funding, however, is pending approval by the provincial board.

Degamo had asked for a budget of P5.57 million that he programmed by allocating P10,000  for each barangay to establish their pocket forests.

Fabre said the idea is good to create awareness among the barangays, but for impact, the government should concentrate on the most critical watershed areas in the province, like in Siaton, Sibulan, Pamplona, as well as in Tayasan, Ayungon and Bindoy, the floodwaters of which go through the the Ilog-Hilabangan river in the south.*JG

back to top