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Friday, May 26, 2006
Groups hail city, DENR watershed protection plan
GROUPS advocating the protection of environment lauded an agreement that will be entered into by the City Government and the environment department, geared towards the protection of the upland watershed areas in Davao City.
The Panaghoy sa Kinaiyahan-Coalition for Mother Earth (Panaghoy) said this development only goes to show that the importance of protecting the upland watershed areas is getting more and more popular.
The group said they are happy that a government-led move to protect the watershed is taking place given the agricultural developments happening in the area.
Thousands of hectares of lands in the southern part of the city had been transformed into monoculture plantations of banana and pineapples.
"This is a welcome development that we have all been waiting for. The community of environmental workers in the city is so happy that something like this is happening because it smoldered furthermore our resolve to really fight for the protection of the upland watershed," said Rein Baco, coordinator of Panaghoy.
Panaghoy is a loose coalition of environmental non-government organization, people's organizations, concerned individuals and academe working together to advance the fight to preserve and conserve the environment.
The group has been consistent in criticizing the irresponsible agricultural practices of plantations in their operations particularly on how they dispose of their synthetic chemical wastes, the practice of aerial spraying, and the inobservance of buffer zones.
All these, Baco said, can harm the environment and the people. The third district is a known rich water resource area.
A co-management agreement for the upland watershed management is reportedly underway and is being carried out by the City Government and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
The agreement, reports said, would serve as a concrete support to the continue clamor for the protection and conservation of the upland watershed areas. Last year, the City Government also made public the results of the Terrain Analysis Study, the subject of which was Davao city's third district.
With the new agreement, the DENR will reportedly create a watershed management plan within six month after the agreement is signed. It is also expected to delineate the protected areas within the upland watershed areas.
A multi-sectoral group will be formed which will be instrumental in the crafting of measures on how to protect and conserve the upland watershed.
The Terrain Analysis Study, also conducted by the government and the DENR last year, also promised to conduct delineation and demarcation of the protected areas and conservation zones within the third district. This, however remains to be done.
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (May 26, 2006 issue)
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