West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services, Inc., (Maynilad) pledged to plant 220,000 trees over 660 hectares this year to reforest watersheds that are vital sources of water supply for Metro Manila residents. This is the highest number of trees that Maynilad has ever targeted to plant in a single year.
Under its annual "Plant for Life" program, Maynilad rallies volunteers from government agencies, private companies, and other organizations to reforest denuded watersheds, which will help prevent soil erosion, thus protecting the quality of water supply for millions of consumers.
This year, Maynilad will plant indigenous tree species (like bamboo, palosapis, narra, kupang, dungon, amisan, and balayong) at the Ipo watershed in Bulacan, and La Mesa watershed in Quezon City. The water company partners with Bantay Gubat and the indigenous communities to ensure the survival of the trees planted by caring for the saplings and maintaining a tree nursery at the site.
Since the "Plant for Life" program's inception in 2007, Maynilad has already planted more than 1.2 million trees and mangroves over 1,308 hectares of planting sites at the Ipo, La Mesa, and Kaliwa watersheds, as well as the coastal areas of Laguna Lake and Manila Bay. The program has enabled Maynilad to reduce its carbon emissions by around 30,000 tons per year, which is equivalent to 7,140 cars off the roads. Maynilad aims to be "climate neutral" by 2037.
"Protecting the watersheds is part of the effort to ensure reliable water service for our customers. By planting trees, we not only prevent the soil erosion that could affect raw water quality, we also promote climate resilience and the sustainability of our water sources for future generations," said Maynilad Chief Sustainability Officer Atty. Roel S. Espiritu.
Maynilad is the largest private water concessionaire in the Philippines in terms of customer base. Its service area includes the cities of Manila (all but portions of San Andres and Sta. Ana), Quezon City (west of San Juan River, West Avenue, EDSA, Congressional, Mindanao Avenue, the northern part starting from the Districts of Holy Spirit and Batasan Hills), Makati (west of South Super Highway), Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas, and Malabon, all in Metro Manila; and the cities of Cavite, Bacoor, and Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta, and Rosario, all in the province of Cavite.