DAVAO CITY – A renowned American wildlife scientist has joined the call to protect the nesting site of the critically-endangered Philippine in the hinterlands of Marilog district here.
Dr. James Grier, a scientist who pioneered the captive breeding of American Bald Eagles, wrote a letter addressed to Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) -11 chief Bagani Fidel Evasco urging him to cancel the cutting permit issued to a local businessman amid prior rejection from the city government.
"I am writing as a person with life-long, scientific interest in eagles, a member of the global, international community from the US, and an adviser to the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF), the foundation's precursors, and the DENR (and its precursors) nationally and locally since 1977," read the letter, which the PEF executive director Dennis Salvador released.
Grier pointed out that "the area should be left in its natural state to the fullest extent possible, including leaving old and even fallen trees naturally in place."
In January this year, the Watershed Management Council of the City Government of Davao has already rejected the application of a certain Ms. Ling Ling Wu Lee to cut trees inside his private property that falls within the conservation.
But in August, Evasco granted a Private Land Timber Permit to Lee, insisting that it was covered by the Presidential Decree 705.
The issuance of the permit has sparked an outcry among environmental groups in the city as they launched an online campaign to call for the cancellation of a timber permit issued to cut down century-old trees in Mounts Makabol-Alikoson Conservation Area (MMACA). The area is believed to be "an ancient nesting site" of the critically endangered Philippine eagle.
The petition calls on the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Region XI to "cancel Private Land Timber Permit No. RXI-PLTP-001 2021 issued for the cutting of 121 old-growth trees within the MMACA."
As of 3 pm of Dec. 10, the online petition posted at Change.org has already gathered at least 5,924 signatures.
In a public statement issued Thursday, Dec. 9, Evasco claimed Lee has voluntarily stopped the cutting of trees in the area since the photos of the cutting of the trees were posted on social media by purok leader Oliver Ancapoy in October.
However, it was not stated in the press statement if Evasco would sign the cancellation permit.
Furthermore, he claimed that the DENR Region 11 is not privy to the metes and bounds of the declared Conservation and Environmentally Critical Area in Barangay Salaysay based on the Davao City Watershed Code.
He claimed that at the time of the approval of the permit, the DENR-XI was "not aware of any telemetric data" regarding the nesting trees claimed by the PEF inside the contested property.
But Evasco admitted that his office, through its Conservation and Development Division (CDD), has been monitoring eight confirmed Philippine Eagle nest sites in the region, including barangay Salaysay particularly between sitios Indaohong and Taupan.
A Philippine Eagle pair needs about 4000-11000 hectares of forestland to thrive in the wild, depending on the number of prey items in the area, the PEF said.
Moreover, Grier added that he would recommend the area be considered a candidate for a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO) World Heritage Site.
"That would be beneficial not only for the eagles, habitat, other species, and watershed but also for the people and communities in the area economically. It could further highlight Davao on the world map in a very favorable manner," he wrote.
Grier was instrumental in the captive breeding program in the country when he helped PEF hatch Pag-asa, the first captive-bred eagle, in 1992.
He added that he had been to Salsaysay in the past to help study the nesting eagles following reports by residents.
Grier's last visit to the country was in 2005 when he joined the PEF team to monitor a Philippine Eagle nesting site in Mt. Sinaka in Arakan, North Cotabato.