Manila’s ‘last lung’ to remain free from development

MANILA, Philippines — Arroceros Forest Park, often described to be Manila’s “last lung,” will remain off-limits to private interests, the city government said yesterday.

Asked by The STAR about potential interest by private groups and developers, Arroceros Forect Park officer-in-charge Gideon Navarro said “no private groups have sent feelers.”

He cited the prohibitions declared by City Ordinance 8607 signed into law in February 2020 by then Manila mayor Isko Moreno.

Under Section 8 of the law, hunting, destroying, disturbing or possession of flora and fauna; digging, including for archaeological purposes; waste dumping; mutilation, defacing or destroying of any object; damaging trails and roads; occupation or squatting; construction and conducting business without a permit; leaving behind refuse or debris; and altering or destroying boundaries and markers are banned in the 2.2-hectare park and its neighboring 5,100-square-meter plaza.

Violators will be fined P2,500 for the first offense, P3,500 for the second offense and P5,000 or a year in jail for succeeding offenses or both.

Navarro added that around a dozen security personnel doing two shifts guard the park round-the-clock.

City Ordinance 8607 was created after private groups and schools appealed for the Arroceros Forest Park to be spared from the construction of a gymnasium for the nearby local government-run Universidad de Manila in 2018, according to information from the park.

The Arroceros Forest Park houses native trees: amugis, apatot, bagras, balete, bignay kalabaw, dao, dita, hauili, is-is, malapapaya, molave, narra, sampaloc, talisay, tuai and yakal.

Local and migratory birds were also seen by birdwatchers in the forest, which was declared a park in 1993.

With the presence of a lot of trees and plants, Navarro said ground temperatures in the area are “three to four degrees lower” than the temperatures recorded in the rest of the city.

As of 3 p.m. yesterday, Manila sizzled with a ground temperature of 38 degrees Celsius as well as a heat index of 45 degrees Celsius as recorded by the city government.

“The forest park has created a microclimate wherein the trees have created a canopy that absorbs the sunlight and carbon dioxide and emits oxygen, as well as attracts migratory birds,” Navarro said.

The park, rehabilitated and reopened in February 2022, features an elevated walkway to prevent visitors from walking on the ground covered with dry leaves and avoid being attacked by animals such as rat snakes and pythons that were also seen in the area.

It also contains a yoga or meditation area, a fountain, a koi pond and an esplanade that faces the Pasig River and gives a view of the Quezon and Ayala Bridges as well as the neighboring Quiapo district.

The Arroceros Forest Park’s management saw a steady rise in visitors each month since reopening in 2022.

It received 45,084 tourists in 2022, 158,402 visitors in 2023, and 54,177 guests from January to March this year.