Mapping model for forest raw materials designed

A computer-based model for inventory and mapping of raw materials for forest-based industries has been developed.

The model was crafted by experts of the UP Los Baños-College of Forestry and Natural Resources (UPLB-CFNR) and Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (DOST-ERDB) with funding support from the DOST-Philippines Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARDD).

Explaining the model’s importance, Dr. Nathaniel Bantayan of UPLB-CFNR and Dr. Evangeline Castillo of DENR-ERDB, who were behind the project, said that today’s furniture and handicraft industries need support in information technology.

"The geographic information system (GIS)-based databank would be the best vehicle from which vital information on the overall picture of the current and future state of the industries can be drawn," they said.

The pieces of information include actual source of production, potential areas which can be sustainable sources of raw materials, market potentials and other vital information to back up and speed up the industry’s production, marketing, and global competitiveness.

Through GIS, any interested furniture and handicraft manufacturer or client can easily locate production source areas. This will provide an efficient system of resource inventory and analysis model for the furniture and handicraft industries, Dr. Bantayan and Dr. Castillo pointed out. — RAF