DENR wins int’l award for dipterocarp project

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has won an international environmental award for its program that aims to restore the country’s dipterocarp forests.

The International Green Apple Environment Post Practice Award was given by the England-based Green Organization, which is supported by the Environmental Agency, Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, Chartered Institute of Waste Management, and Municipal Journal.

The Golden Award was conferred on the DENR during a recent ceremony at Westminster Palace in London "for its efforts on environmental restoration and conservation."

The DENR project, called "Macro-propagation of Dipterocarps by Seedlings, Wildlings, and Rooted Cuttings," is being implemented by the Los Baños-based DENR-Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (ERDB). Dr. Mitsi Pollisco, senior science research specialist, is the project leader.

Pollisco said the project involves the development of non-mist propagation technology using rooted cuttings or clonal technology, and utilizes a wildling recovery chamber in the mass production of indigenous planting materials.

Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Angelo Reyes expressed elation over the award. "We at DENR have always worked hard to restore our degraded forest areas. This dipterocarp propagation project will certainly be instrumental in bringing back the dipterocarp forests where the famous ‘Philippine mahogany’ abounds," he said.

Dipterocarps are dominant forest tree species — among them, apitong, lauan, and tanguile — and are collectively and commercially known as Philippine mahogany.

Overuse of these natural resources has caused the trees to become endangered, according to the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES).

"It takes about 18 years before a dipterocarp tree flowers, after which, seed production occurs at an interval of two to 10 years. Unfortunately, seeds can only last for three weeks," Pollisco said.

This nature of dipterocarp species prompted the DENR to pursue its non-mist propagation system to produce planting materials.

As of 2002, it was estimated that the country’s dipterocarp forests covered some 3.5 million hectares, about one million hectares of which were in Cagayan Valley (Region 2).

"The dipterocarp propagation project proves to be very important now since we will be embarking on rehabilitating our major river basins using species that are indigenous to the country," Reyes said.