An endangered heritage

During the 2nd century B.C., a group of Greek writers listed the greatest monuments and constructions known to the classical world and they limited the choice to seven because that number was believed to be magical. After the discovery of the Banaue rice terraces (only about a century ago), many knowledgeable people considered them as the eighth wonder of the world. Here is how Florence Horn described the Ifugao terraces in her book entitled Orphans of the Pacific published before World War II.

"Stretched end to end, the terraces would reach halfway around the world. To build them, no one knows how many thousand years ago, the Ifugaos carried the stones up from the riverbed far below. They built the terraces with the skill of trained engineers. Sometimes a terrace wall rises as high as 75 feet; its area greater than the rice-growing surface it was built to support. To hold the water, the terraces are carefully lined with clay.

"No water is wasted. The knowledge possessed by the pagan Ifugao amazes scientists, as does their knowledge of forestry. An Ifugao knows well the effects of trees on his water supply… What little forest remains in the Ifugao country is guarded as faithfully as the gold in Fort Knox. If the water supply runs low, from lack of rain, an Ifugao will sprinkle his rice only at night so that less water will be lost by evaporation. If the situation gets worse, an Ifugao makes an important decision. If he owns four terraces, he must decide that he must sacrifice one of them to save the rest of the crop. He will withhold from one using all his irrigation for the other three. All this and much more the pagan Ifugao, who is an engineer, forester, and agriculturist, knows. His uncanny wisdom is unrecorded. His knowledge, which includes an elaborate calendar, is handed down from generation to generation."

In 1965, the UNESCO recognized the Banaue Rice terraces as a World Heritage site. Now it has announced that they have been damaged by as much as 20 to 30 percent and that unless restored within five years, they will be lost forever. The rehabilitation of the terraces will take three years at a staggering cost of PhP1.3 billion!

We commend Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Heherson Alvarez, Senators Edgardo Angara and Blas Ople for the great concern they have displayed for the conservation and rehabilitation of this priceless national and world treasure. It is our greatest purely indigenous accomplishment. In the whole country, rice is grown in the lowlands. The Ifugaos through sheer hard work were able to convert a mountain into rice terraces which still serve that purpose to this day. We must do everything to preserve our greatest and oldest historical heritage.