On August 29, 2025, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. signed into law Republic Act 12237, declaring Mt. Sawtooth in Tarlac as a Protected Area under the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System (E-NIPAS) Act. With this declaration, Mt. Sawtooth joins over a hundred other protected areas, including Mt. Arayat here Pampanga, that have been granted legal status and government funding for conservation.
RA 12237 listed the boundaries of the protected area within the Municipalities of Mayantoc and San Jose in the Province of Tarlac. However, a check on Google Maps places Mt. Sawtooth within Palauig, Zambales, where the more famous Mt. Tapulao is located - likely a clerical error.
Mt. Sawtooth derived its name from its jagged, saw-like peaks. It is a vital watershed, a biodiversity hotspot, and a home to many endemic flora and fauna. Its forests serve as a carbon sink, regulate water flow to nearby agricultural lands, and provide a haven for threatened wildlife.
Biological surveys conducted in 2019 by the Institute of Biology at the University of the Philippines Diliman, confirmed the presence of the mottled-winged flying fox, orange-fingered myotis, and Rhyncomys tapulao. The area also supports globally threatened species, including the golden-capped fruit bat, northern rufous hornbill, Philippine deer, Luzon bleeding-heart, Luzon ranged frog, and warty pig.
To oversee the management of the area, a Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) will be created. It will be chaired by the Regional Executive Director of Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Region III. Its members include the Governor of Tarlac, a senator from Tarlac (in this case Bam Aquino), mayors, congressmen and barangay captains with jurisdiction over the two towns, as well as government agencies, NGO’s, the academe, indigenous people’s representatives (if any) and the private sector.
The recent Captain’s Peak Resort controversy in Bohol highlighted the crucial role and responsibility of the PAMB in regulating activities within the protected area. Just last August, the Ombudsman dismissed DENR officials who are PAMB members, including the Regional Director, for grave misconduct and gross neglect of duty. The 22 barangay captains who also sit in the PAMB were likewise suspended for simple misconduct.
To handle day-to-day operations, a Protected Area Management Office (PAMO), headed by a Protected Area Superintendent (PASu), will also be established. In the meantime, the PENRO of DENR-Tarlac province has been designated as acting PASu. Forest rangers will likewise be deployed to guard the area.
Funding for the management of the protected area will primarily come from the DENR budget. It can be supplemented by grants, donations, and endowment from various sources, domestic or foreign as well as income derived from fees and charges from the use of resources and facilities.
The declaration of Mt. Sawtooth as a protected area is welcome news. Still, balancing conservation with development remains a delicate task. Infrastructure projects, such as roads or tourism facilities, must be carefully evaluated to prevent damage the ecosystems meant to be preserved. The lessons of the Captain’s Peak controversy must serve as a reminder.
As the world faces intensifying climate and biodiversity crises, local victories such as this remind us that protecting nature is not just an environmental issue—it is a human one.