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Tuesday, June 07, 2005
Wood processors' permits withheld
By Ben O. Tesiorna
THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) suspended the permit of about 19 wood processing plants operating within the region after they failed to show a log supply contract with accredited logging companies.
Claudio Jumao-as, chief of the Forest Conservation Division of the Forest Management Services, said that aside from the 19 wood processing companies there are also four other companies whose contracts they have not renewed.
"For the same reason na wala silang approved log supply contract," Jumao-as said.
The log supply contract, he said, is a contract between the wood processing firm and accredited logging corporations to ensure that all logs that are processed came from legal sources.
It was learned that there are 94 wood processing plants operating here in the region that are recognized by the DENR.
Sun.Star Davao tried getting the names of the firms whose permits were suspended from the DENR regional office but in vain.
Meanwhile, Jumao-as revealed that DENR Secretary Mike Defensor had recently asked the DENR-11 on their position on the lifting of the total log ban.
Jumao-as said they have expressed their opinion against the total log ban "for sustainable development reasons".
Early this year, the DENR secretary lifted the total log ban in Regions 11 and 13.
This was however met with opposition by some governors and mayors.
Compostela Valley Governor Jose Caballero said he will not allow the lifting of the total log ban in his province saying that their environment had suffered much damage in the past and would not allow further degradation due to logging.
Mayor Rodrigo Duterte also declared the city off limits to any kind of logging be it legal or illegal.
"I don't want our city to be arid in the future," Duterte said.
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (June 7, 2005 issue)
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