The Department of Environment and Natural Resources- CARAGA is working on short and long term solutions to illegal logging in the country’s timber corridor.
DENR Assistant Secretary Marlo D. Mendoza, who is currently the Regional Executive Director of DENR-Caraga Region, said the top management of DENR 13 is studying a new strategy new strategy that would hopefully put an end to illegal logging activities and poverty in the upland areas of the region.
He made the announcement during the 111th Police Servicing Anniversary Celebration last Monday in Butuan City.
Mendoza said one strategy is the establishment of forest cluster enterprise in several areas where all confiscated forest products are deposited and processed into lumber.
Supervised by DENR officers, the forest cluster area serves as the focal point where confiscated logs are brought in and processed into lumber for the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA)-Department of Education (DepEd)school chairs program.
Mendoza noted that there have been several attempts to solve the illegal logging problem in the area but to no avail.
Initially, Mendoza claimed he made talks with Governors Johnny Pimentel of Surigao del Sur , Adolf Edward Plaza of Agusan del Sur , Sol F. Matugas of Surigao del Norte Mayor Ferdinand Amante of Butuan City and Mayor Librado Cubil Navarro of Bislig City over the past two months since he assumed his new post in July 2012, to get their comments about the short and medium to long term solutions to illegal logging in the region.
He said these local officials has offered their full support and cooperation in terms of logistics, manpower and equipment to accomplish the job.
“Our objective is to help those families who were dislocated by the relentless campaign of the DENR and the Anti-Illegal Logging Task Force enforcing Executive Order 23 signed by President Benigno C. Aquino on February 2,2011”, Mendoza added.
Mendoza further said DENR has made special arrangements with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the local government officials that will provide financial aid through the Cash Conditional Transfer Fund to qualified affected families while they are await harvest of their crops and planted species such as falcatta, bagras, and acacia mangium.
Also under such arrangements, DENR encouraged these families to plant trees and cash crops to augment their income. [PNA]
“We are encouraging the upland farmers and the indigenous people to participate in the National Greening Program (NGP) to provide supply of raw materials for wood requirements of the wood industry” Mendoza concludes.
In related development, DENR plans to utilize the indigenous people in the protection of government-owned plantations such as the PICOP Industry Inc., the Nasipit Lumber Company (NALCO) and the Surigao Development Corp. (SUDECOR) rather than see the trees inside these former concession areas being illegally harvested.
“We are looking into solutions whereby the indigenous people are given royalty as incentive for protecting these plantation areas and shall be compensated for undertaking forestry activities such as harvesting, hauling and possibly primary processing” Mendoza said.
He said, however, that the “solutions to illegal logging problem in the region will always depend on the response of the multiple government and non-government agencies , the religious sector, private organizations and the law enforcement entities.
“We have to work together for the common good of the people” Mendoza in finality said. [PNA]
