DENR Aims to Expand Marikina Watershed's Forest Cover by 20 Percent with Three Million Tree Planting Initiative

Strategic Insights -

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is working towards expanding the forest cover of the Marikina Watershed by 20 percent within the next three years through a tree planting initiative. The target is to plant three million trees, which will include 1,300 hectares of land within the 2,700-hectare conservation area in the Upper Marikina River Basin Protected Landscape (UMRBPL). This initiative aims to increase the forest cover from the current 24.99 percent to 43 percent, which will help in conserving biodiversity, protecting watersheds, and ensuring sustainable management of natural resources.

Key Takeaways:

  • The DENR plans to plant three million trees within the next three years to expand the forest cover of the Marikina Watershed by 20 percent.
  • The target is to include 1,300 hectares of land within the 2,700-hectare conservation area in the UMRBPL, which is home to endangered flora and fauna species.
  • The protected area covers a total of 26,125.64 hectares in the city of Antipolo and in the towns of Baras, Rodriguez, San Mateo, and Tanay, all in the province of Rizal.
  • The UMRBPL is home to forest trees like narra, red and white lauan, bagtikan, kamagong, and molave, and wild fauna that includes birds like the Philippine bulbul, black-naped oriole, and jungle fowl.
  • The DENR's Forest Management Bureau (FMB) Assistant Director Ray Thomas Kabigting said that increasing the closed forests of the UMRBPL is of utmost importance, as it signifies previously degraded or barren areas are now thriving with healthy trees.
  • The closed forest cover expansion has resulted in a decrease in open forests, indicating a healthy ecological progression.
  • The area has seen 628.47 hectares (1.77 percent) of shrublands evolve into open forests, underscoring the efficacy of both reforestation initiatives and natural regeneration processes.
  • The UMRBPL has seen significant improvements in forest cover, with a decrease of 1,138.28 hectares (20.95 percent) in open forests and a growth of 3,984,600 trees in 2015 and 1,337,839 trees between 2021 and 2025 with a survival rate of 75 percent.
  • The DENR-Calabarzon Regional Executive Director Nilo Tamoria attributes the improvements in UMRBPL's forest cover to the National Greening Program (NGP) that began in 2011, coinciding with UMRBPL's proclamation as a protected area.

Statistics:

  • 3 million trees to be planted within the next three years
  • 1,300 hectares of land to be included within the 2,700-hectare conservation area in the UMRBPL
  • 24.99 percent current forest cover of the UMRBPL
  • 43 percent target forest cover of the UMRBPL
  • 26,125.64 hectares total area covered by the UMRBPL
  • 3,984,600 trees grown in 2015
  • 1,337,839 trees grown between 2021 and 2025 with a survival rate of 75 percent
  • 20.95 percent decrease in open forests
  • 1.77 percent increase in shrublands evolving into open forests
  • 75 percent survival rate of trees grown between 2021 and 2025

Sources:

  • The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)
  • The Forest Management Bureau (FMB) of the DENR
  • The National Greening Program (NGP)
  • Proclamation 296 dated September 26, 2011
  • Executive Order 23 in 2011
  • Executive Order 193 in 2015
  • UMRBPL Management Plan 2020-2030
  • The Masungi Georeserve Foundation Inc.
  • Ben and his daughters, Billy and Ann Dumaliang of the Blue Star Construction and Development Corporation
  • Nilo Tamoria, DENR-Calabarzon Regional Executive Director
  • Ray Thomas Kabigting, FMB Assistant Director