Saving RP’s forests

A technology developed by a Los Baños scientist now holds the great potential as "savior" of the country’s dwindling dipterocarp forests.

Called "non-mist clonal multiplication technique", it was developed by Dr. Mitzi Tijana-Pollisco of the Los Baños-based Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (DENR-ERDB).

Through it, clones of dipterocarp species are now robustly growing in various parts of the country, giving the local wood industry the optimistic assurance of future supply of timber from this group of forest species.

First, an explanation of terms.

A clone is a vegetative copy of an original or mother/parent plant. Cloning is a propagation method that allows for selection of the best trees and replicating them with their superior or desired characteristics intact.

Dipterocarps are tree species known for their superior wood quality and large timber. They are regarded as the most economically important group of timber species, popularly called "Philippine mahogany," a trade name in the international market.

The technology has so far earned for Dr. Pollisco three prestigious awards.

The latest was the International Green Apple Environmental Best Practice Award received by the DENR-ERDB scientist last Nov. 20 at the House of Commons, Westminster Palace, London, England.

Dr. Pollisco was one of 13 winners of the golden award from six countries among the more than a thousand nominees from various parts of the world. The nominations were evaluated by a group called Green Organization, composed of nongovernment organizations in the United Kingdom (Environmental Agency, Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, Chartered Institution of Waste Management, Municipal Journal) and other England-based environmental bodies.

Dr. Pollisco won the award for her pioneering work on the mass propagation of dipterocarp trees, among them lawaan, tangile, yakal, and apitong.

In an earlier interview with this writer, she recalled that they planted the first dipterocarp clones at the Mt. Palay-palay National Park in Ternate, Cavite, in 1997.

Since then, countless dipterocarp clones have been planted in DENR experimental forests and in private tree farms across the country.

Even local government units have been adopting the technology for their reforestation work.

The significance of the DENR-ERDB R&D breakthrough has been acknowledged by the forestry sector, considering that dipterocarps are hard to regenerate naturally.

Forest scientists say that dipterocarp species start maturing at 17-18 years and seed production at a two to 10-year interval, depending on the species. The seeds are viable only in just three to four weeks after collection.

The alternative propagation methods developed by Dr. Pollisco using rooted cuttings through the non-mist system and use of the wildling recovery chamber can provide planting materials during the years when seeds of dipterocarp species are not available.

There are now only about 3.5 million hectares of dipterocarp forests left in the country (2002 DENR statistics). Of these, only more than a million hectares remain in the Cagayan Valley (dubbed as among the "last frontiers" of Philippine forestry) and only more than 3,000 ha in Central Visayas.

With the DENR-ERDB technology, the Philippines may yet win in its "race against time" to save what is left of what were once lush forest resources. – Rudy A. Fernandez