Environment Month 2011

The whole month of June is Environment month per Proclamation No. 237, Series of 1998. This is pronounced in order to focus public attention to the protection and conservation of the country’s natural resources.

This year’s theme; FOREST: NATURE AT YOUR SERVICE, is very timely considering that now is the highest time to act together to save our forest as a very vital piece of our natural resources.

In relation to the Environment Month 2011 and the 1st Anniversary of the Sibulan River Ridge to Reef Conservation Project, the Local Government of Sta. Cruz and the HEDCOR Aboitiz Corporation have spearheaded a tree planting and river clean up activity on June 28, 2011 at Sibulan River, Barangay Darong, Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur. Other private companies as stakeholders of the initiative were also present during the event such as the Ayala Corporation, CJ Toyota Tsusho Philippines, Inc., among others.

LOGSAC and other outdoor groups in Sta. Cruz like SAVERS, AMECC and TRIMMOC Sta. Cruz Chapter also showed interest by participating the event. This gigantic alliance of mountaineers in the place is a manifestation that indeed we need to closely work hand in hand to save the remaining piece of our natural heritage, the SIBULAN RIVER.

The vacant area along Sibulan River in Darong was planted with bamboo seedlings. Already saturated with such specie because there were other tree plantings conducted before this event, there is still a need to plant more trees in order to attain higher survival rate. It will also stabilize the riverbanks that will eventually prevent more floods in the future.

“This is a very commendable undertaking,” said Sta. Cruz mayor Joel Ray L. Lopez. “We hope to see more initiatives like this in the future that will protect nature.”
Adventure sidelights were conducted after the tree planting through rappelling and water tubing. These activities are maintained to further beef up ecotourism development within Sibulan River and are somehow envisioned to make the river visible in a longer period of time.

Many thanks to LOGSAC members who joined the event: Julius Paner, Jonas Florencondia, Irish Ann Palanca, Trecelyn Cabaluna, Faridah Lumpapac, Dra. Raygene Medronero and Henry Gapula.