Decennia-old trees cut without ‘proper consultation’

(Photo by Macky Lim)
(Photo by Macky Lim)

AN ENVIRONMENTAL group was surprised upon seeing the trees at Clifford Park along Roxas Avenue in Davao City were chopped a day before All Saints’ Day.

Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability (Idis) founder Arnold Vandenbroeck posted on his Facebook account on Wednesday, October 30, photos of the cut decennia-old trees in the center island park between the Davao Central Post Office and the Marco Potel.

Vandenbroeck said he was dismayed after discovering that all of the trees in the park were removed.

“Who is responsible for such a dastardly environmental destruction in a time of climate change and global warming? Who let it happen? Who made it happen?” he said on his post.

“Does Davao City not have any system to prevent this from happening?” he added.

Clifford Park and the Freedom Park fronting Ateneo de Davao University are two of the “Millennium Parks” at the Roxas Avenue.

Vandenbroeck said based on Idis’ year-long monitoring, Clifford Park was the most visited and utilized park in the city as it is more accessible anytime, until People’s Park, which has limited operating hours, opened to the public.

He said the park is being used by youth and students for chatting, exercising, and practice for dance and movement routines.

The envi-group official also said Dabawenyos nominated the park in the annual Lunhaw Awards “as an effective example of what intensively used small and pocket parks can be like”.

Lunhaw Awards is an annual event organized by the City Government of Davao, in partnership with Idis that aims to give recognition to Dabawenyos for their green initiatives, which could be replicated in the communities in the city.

“Now it’s gone! We mourn for the trees! [sic],” Vandenbroeck said.

Idis executive director Chinkie Peliño-Golle said on Friday, November 1, that there was no prior consultation when the cutting of the trees was executed.

“Sa tinuod lang walay consultation nga nahitabo. Grabe among panawagan nga undangan ang urban deforestation. Nalain lang mi ngano wala kana nabantayan (Honestly, no consultation transpired when the cutting of these trees were made. We had long been lobbying for the stoppage of urban deforestation in the city. We are disappointed that we were not able to see this coming),” Peliño-Golle told Sunstar Davao in a phone interview.

She added that the trees had been a part of the city’s history.

She also said they cannot determine, as of the writing, the agency responsible for the cutting. Although she mentioned that the permit was either issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) or the Davao City Environment and Natural Resources Office (Cenro).

She added the Davao City Parks Board, who manages all the parks in the city, should have been transparent in the purpose of cutting these trees.

Although she said cutting of trees, for public safety purposes, may be allowed under the Disaster Risk Reduction Management Act of 2010 if these pose threat to the public.

But she said there was no threat since the trees existed for many years.

Meanwhile, she said Councilor Pilar Braga already pledged to discuss the matter in the next regular session of the 19th City Council this Tuesday, November 5.

Peliño-Golle said Braga told her the Council was also not aware of the cutting of these trees.

Braga previously expressed her concerns about a Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) drainage and revetment project near Ma-a riverbanks wherein 150 trees were chopped.

During a committee hearing organized by Councilor Diosdado Mahipus Jr., it was discovered that the project did not undergo proper consultation with the city government despite securing a permit from DENR.

SunStar Davao sought comments from DENR and Cenro but has not received any reply as of 6 p.m. Friday, November 1.

Trending

No stories found.

Just in

No stories found.

Branded Content

No stories found.
SunStar Publishing Inc.
www.sunstar.com.ph