BUTUAN CITY – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in the Caraga region planted 27,502 seedlings of indigenous species, mangroves, and bamboo on Monday, June 5, in celebration of World Environment Month.
Spearheaded by DENR-13 Regional Executive Director (RED) Nonito M. Tamayo, the activity was also participated in by 1,866 volunteer planters from various government agencies, academe, local government units, mining companies, private institutions and IPs, and other stakeholders.
DENR-13 regional staff and personnel, along with the Mines and Geosciences Bureau-13, Environmental Management Bureau Caraga, and field offices comprising five Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Offices (PENROs) and 10 Community Environment and Natural Resources Offices (CENROs) also conducted river and coastal cleanups in selected bodies of water region-wide and tree-planting within mined-out, coastal, and other suitable planting areas.
These activities also served as kick-off for the Philippine Environment Month Celebration this month with the theme "No to Waste: Advancing Circular Economy to Beat Plastic Pollution.”
Simultaneously conducted region-wide were cleanup and tree-planting on the banks of the Iyao River, a tributary of the Taguibo Rivers that supplies the water needs of Butuan City; Umayam River in Barangay Waloe, Loreto; cleanup drives along the national highway in Purok 7, Maygatasan, and Purok 24, Poblacion, Bayugan City; Magsaysay Park and Malinao Creek in Del Monte, Talacogon, all of Agusan del Sur; coastal areas in Barangays Mabua and Rosario in Tandag, Surigao del Sur; Hinatuan Island, Tagana-an, and Claver, Surigao del Norte.
Tree-planting activities were also held within the rehabilitation areas of Philsaga Mining Corp. (PMC), San Roque Metals Inc. (SRMI), Agata Mining Ventures Inc. (AMVI) under CENRO Tubay, Agusan del Norte; Mindanao Mineral Processing and Refining Corporation (MMPRC) in Agusan del Sur; Adnama Mining Resources Inc. (ARMI), Hinatuan Mining Corp.-Tagaan-an Nickel Project (HMC-TNP), Platinum Group Metals Corp. (PGMC), Taganito HPAL Nickel Corp. (THPAL), Greenstone Resources Corp., Silangan Mindanao Mining Company Inc. (SMMCI), Manila Mining Corp. (MMC), Pacific Cement Phils. Inc. (PCPI), Pacific Nickel Phils. Inc. (PNPI), all under PENRO Surigao del Norte; Carrascal Nickel Corp., Kafugan Mining Inc., Marcventures Mining and Development Corp., 4D Ventures and Development Inc., CTP Construction and Mining Corp. under CENRO Cantilan, Surigao del Sur; Philsaga Mining Corp. (PMC) in CENRO Lianga, Surigao del Sur; and Cagdianao Mining Corp. (CMC), Libjo Mining Corp. (LMC), SRMI-Dinagat, Westernshore Nickel Corp. (WNC), Oriental Vision Mining Phils. Corp. (OVMPC), Sinosteel Philippines, SinoSteel Philippines HY Mining Corp., and Stagno Mining Corporation under PENRO Dinagat Islands.
PMC President Raul C. Villanueva is set to give 20,000 seedlings of various tree species, including fruit trees, to Bunawan DENR-CENR Officer Jerome H. Albia for the continuing tree-planting activities during the environment month. “Aside of the DENR environment month activity, we are also supportive of the government’s National Greening Program,” Villanueva said.
Aside from the mined-out areas, tree-planting activities also took place on the Sian River in Barangay Santa Cruz, Bislig City and in the coastal Barangay of Wakat, Lianga, Surigao del Sur; Barangay Waloe of Loreto, and Barangay Consuelo of Bunawan, Agusan del Sur.
“Our tree-planting program is not only for this month, but this is our continuing program in relation to our global warming and climate change mitigation program,” DENR-13 Regional Executive Director (RED) Nonito T. Tamayo said on Sunday, June 11.
“After all, our environment preservation and forest protection program is also intended to our next generation,” Tamayo added.
The cleanup drives also gathered more than 500 kilos of waste, mostly plastics, of which more than 53 percent are residuals.