THE Chico River System and the Mount Pulag National Park are among the priority areas in the country for the implementation of the Sustainable Integrated Area Development Management (SIADM).
DENR – Cordillera introduced the Sustainable Integrated Area Development Management (SIADM) to the different stakeholders in the region in a four-day forum here last week.
DENR-Cordillera Regional Director Ralph Pablo explained the SIADM is an approach introduced by Secretary Regina Paz Lopez which aims to improve the general well-being of the people while sustaining the integrity of the ecosystem through the convergence of different stakeholders in the development and management of the identified areas.
It seeks social justice through implementation of environmental protection programs that would increase the rate of growth potentials of communities and primary stakeholders in the selected sites nationwide.
“The agency has included the Chico River System and the Mount Pulag National Park to be transformed into income-generating sites to improve the lives of marginalized communities through the SIADM,” said Pablo.
The Chico River stretches from the provinces of Ifugao, Mountain Province, Kalinga and Apayao in the Cordillera region and through several municipalities in Cagayan province before converging in the Cagayan River, while Mount Pulag National Park is located in the tri-boundaries of the provinces of Benguet, Ifugao and Nueva Vizcaya.
DENR Assistant Secretary for Field Operations of Luzon Juan Miguel Cana said through the SIADM, the agency will make these identified areas self-sustaining in a well-protected environment and with people happy because they are free from hunger and poverty. He added that the project will provide alternative sources of livelihood that promote the preservation of the environment and natural resources.
The areas will be evaluated based on available resources, as well as needs and requirements, which will become the basis in determining possible livelihood opportunities similar to those in established ecotourism zones like the La Mesa Ecopark in Quezon City, and Ugong Rock and Iwahig Firefly Watching in Puerto Princesa, Palawan. (Redjie Melvic Cawis/PIA-CAR)