By Leilanie G. Adriano
Staff reporter
LAOAG CITY—The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in
Ilocos Norte recently signed a memorandum of agreement with the Piddig
municipal government to protect and develop forests in Piddig.
The Forest Land Use Plan
(FLUP) is the first to be approved in the province.
Funded jointly by the DENR
and the Piddig government, the FLUP is meant to alleviate poverty and hunger
through an effective and efficient management, protection and sustainable
development of its forests and forestlands in the upland areas.
“This means a lot for us. If you look around, there’s a lot of public lots [that are] underutilized,” said Piddig Mayor Eduardo G. Guillen in an interview
following the recent signing of the FLUP held at RiverMount Hotel in Sarrat,
Ilocos Norte on March 4.
Of the 14,000-hectare forest
area in Piddig, about 11,000 has been identified as production area for
possible plantation development.
Under the MOA, the DENR will
lead and conduct different training workshops and field level activities in
pursuing the preparation of the FLUP; assist in the preparation of the
executive order for the members of the city or municipality FLUP technical
working group; and provide guidance in the legitimization and adoption process
of the plan.
As a counterpart, the Piddig
local government unit pledged to allocate an initial
P23 million for a period of five years.
For 2017, provincial
environment and natural resources officer (PENRO) Juan de los Reyes said other
local government units here have also applied for FLUP yet they can only
accommodate at least four to five municipalities for now.
While preparing for the FLUP,
Mr. Delos Reyes urged all local government units in the province to formulate their municipal land use plan integrating the three
important component which include the following: disaster risk and reduction
and management, integrated coastal resources and management, and forest land
use.
He added that the DENR is ready to extend the necessary technical assistance and
support in the formulation and approval of the said plan at the municipal, city
or provincial level as it calls for strong and meaningful collaborative efforts
among the various stakeholders.
A FLUP is a strategic
framework for making land and resource use decisions for a given area. The
planning process strives for balance among all forest values—environmental,
economic and social, the statement reads.
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