The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is shifting its focus to the long-term survival of the more than 4.2 million saplings distributed nationwide during this year’s Philippine Arbor Day campaign.
In a news release Thursday, Environment Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna stressed that more than planting trees, Arbor Day’s success depends on how many trees survive in the years ahead.
“The true measure of Arbor Day goes beyond how many trees we plant today, but how many continue to grow years from now,” Cuna said.
“A sapling survives only when people care for it. A forest thrives only when communities protect it. And environmental stewardship succeeds only when the government, local communities, schools, civil society organizations, and the private sector work together,” he noted.
Cuna said the DENR is rolling out a rigorous post-planting monitoring framework, in partnership with regional offices, local government units, and various stakeholders who took part in the campaign,
This includes sustained watering and protection to ensure long-term results.
Acknowledging the importance of sustained community participation, Marvin Duco, a youth volunteer from Samar, encouraged more young Filipinos to take part in environmental conservation activities.
“I am encouraging the youth to join this kind of activity since it is really sustainable, and it will help us not only environmentally but also socially and economically, and it will be utilized by future generations,” he said.
For Arnold Natividad, a laborer at the Parks Development Office of the Manila City Hall, protecting the planted trees is also about protecting communities from disasters, noting that the trees planted would help urban cities like Manila in the future.
“Take care of what we and the DENR planted; do not destroy them because all of us will suffer. Trees are the first defense against floods and strong winds,” he said.
Meanwhile, Randy Matibag, Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Officer of Dolores, Quezon, urged volunteers to continue caring for the seedlings long after Arbor Day.
“It is important for us all, along with the volunteers, to care for them, to water them and make sure they live so that our efforts are not wasted,” he said.
Cuna said the initiative supports President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s directive to strengthen environmental protection while making tree planting an integral part of flood control and disaster resilience efforts.
He added that the DENR’s greening campaign is intended to generate benefits beyond expanding forest cover.
“These greening efforts seek a whole-of-nation approach to help secure water resources, restore biodiversity, mitigate flooding and soil erosion, improve air quality, provide livelihoods, and strengthen the country’s resilience against the growing impacts of climate change,” he noted. (PNA)