Cooperative policy between gov't and private to advance forestry in the islands

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Part of Forestry Leaves

Title: Cooperative policy between gov't and private to advance forestry in the islands
Language: English
Year: 1954
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Fulltext: Cooperative Policy Between Government and Private to Advance Forestry in the Islands By MARTIN GUERRERO Forest Entomologist, B.F. INTRODUCTION The forest is a national need and its existence benefits not only a certain group of individuals but the whole race and of generations to come. Its maintenance should be the concern both of the state and of every citizen if forestry is expected to attain a successful establishment and to render its maximum service to mankind. Every individual as well as any private organization, society, or corporation should cooperate with the government in formulating the best plan for administering the vast forests of the country and should take an active part in the proper conservation of such resources in order to perpetuate their usefulness. We must be conscious of the two-fold benefits derived from the forests: namely; their direct contribution to the nation in the production of materials capable of being employed in a variety of ways for our economic development and the indirect influences, as in the promotion of health and sanitation, protection of soil, control of stream flow, conservation of moisture, etc.; which, let alone the forest, no other resource can produce. These benefits play such a national importance in the life of any people that they cannot be valued in terms of money so that it behooves not only upon the government to advance forestry practice but for every one to extend a helping hand in the furtherance of such a general enterprise. Common Ground for the Government and Individual to Cooperate in Forestry Practice 1. The individual inhabitant is in many ways of great help in forestry although not September, 1954 with the least intention to perform the work a forester is called upon to accomplish. He may act as an agency of the state in dessiminating forestry principles to the great bulk of the masses. It is only by means of making the people forestry-minded that they can appreciate the value of our forests and anyone who undertakes such a humanitarian work is surely cooperating with the government in a noble task. The lack of information or ignorance of the people on the varied uses of, and many services rendered by, the forest to civilization is in most cases responsible for their careless treatment with our forest products. 2. Forestry as a business can never succeed irrespective of whether it is a government ownership if the people are antagonistic to its application. This is especially true in the practice of this profession where time element is an important factor. A specific example may· be cited: the reforestation projects carried on by the government where drawbacks have been encountered by the Bureau of Forestry due to the unsympathetic attitude and ill-feeling of the inhabitants to this beneficial work. It is only thru the whole hearted cooperation of the public in general that this part of forestry practice may achieve a successful end. 3. Any citizen even in his private life can be of great help to the cause of forestry by being law-abiding. Many of the violations committed against our forest laws and regulations involving the destruction of forest products valued by the thousands, nay by the millions of pesos, should have been reduced to a minimum if every person understands thoroughly his duties to his country Page 19 and exercises his privileges in the right perspective. The extensive cogonal areas and wide second growth forests all over the Philippine Islands which were originally covered with virgin stands of timber should have not been turned to such a state of conditions, now causing our government more harm than good, if our forefathers were aware of the harmful effects of their wastefulness. Other nations which experienced the same fate might have avoided the recurrence of the evil effects of forest devastation if they could foretell the damages wrought by a barren land. By simply obeying the rules and regulations promulgated by the state, one can cooperate in improving the administration of our government, much less in helping the Bureau of Forestry to advance the science of forestry in the Philippines. 4. In dealing with forest violation, the state needs everybody's cooperation in order to bring the real culprit to justice or otherwise to make him pay for the damage done provided for by law. A great many forest offenses could not be acted upon in accordance with existing regulations because the offender cannot be identified or sometimes cannot be located. Such a situation encourages the law breakers to perpetuate their prohibited trade and for the little benefit they get from their illicit practice, the whole nation is penalized. If each inhabitant exercises his civic spirit, any infringement of the law is easily straightened up and undoubtedly the violator cannot escape his corresponding penalty. 5. Persons holding licenses or permits issued by the Bureau of Forestry are likewise of great help in advancing forestry principles thruout the Philippines if they are furnished with adequate instruction as to the proper execution of laws or regulations affecting the administration of our forests. In fact most of the violations committed against the forest are brought to the attention of the government thru the information given by these licensees and permittees. Had it not been due to the untiring efforts of these Pa1e 20 persons a great many of the notorious forest law-breakers might have been allowed to operate their illegal business unmolested or unnoticed. Again, the government at various occasions was able to exhibit here and abroad different samples of high grade forest products furnished by some licensees. This no doubt advertised a great deal the true result of forestry, which is an effective way of making the profession more popular. 6. Any person private or what not can cooperate with the state in the conservation of our forest resources. Conservation does not preclude the entire abandonment of our timber stands and their by-products from utilization but it means their wise use. By properly using our forest products each and everybody is taking part in conservation work. However, if we go deeper into the subject, we can help in conservation work in many ways. The mere judicious management of our fire bordering the forests or simply telling our neighbors to take good care of their fires and not to set grass lands on flames is a protection work in itself which can be done by any man even without any technical training. To pasture our animals away from timber lands so as not to trample reproductions or destroy old ones is a patriotic step toward perpetuating our forests. The careful felling of trees and the exercise of wise discretion in transporting forest products from the forests are acts tending to lengthen the existence of our forest resources, which any person can do without incurring any expense on the part of the government. 7. Newspapermen, authors and all other walks of life can do well to cooperate with the government in forest conservation by publishing articles or writing books which serve to inform the public on the economic necessities of the forests. A work of this kind is probably worth more than thousands of pesos appropriated for protection purposes since it educates the masses and it tends to create public sentiment as to the extreme (Continued on page 38) FORESTRY LEAVES BIOGRAPHY OF ... (Continued from page 22) danao. In various other ways he has demonstrated a positive interest in the welfare of the local boyhood through volunteer service in Scouting. A real Scouter and leader." On the occasion of the Golden Anniversary of the Bureau of Forestry on Aprii 14, 1950, Agapito L. Cenabre was a recipient of service award diploma and special gift from Secretary Placido Mapa of the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources. The service award was in recognition of continuous, faithful and meritorious service rendered to the Bureau for not less than 25 years, while the special gift was for attaining 42 years of service in the same Bureau. ''Tito'' had twice made a vow with the seventh sacrament; however, in both cases he was not blessed with any child. Tito had applied for retirement effective on August 18, 1953, but his services was indefinitely extended by the President of the Philippines in accordance with the decision of the Cabinet. He finally got retired on February 28, 1954. But this biographer has only narrated so much of what he and other people know about and think of Cenabre. The following extract from a letter of Tito on his retirement, will give a direct insight of the man on his sense of duty and relation with his co-employees. "* • • I am now retired since February 28, 1954. Of course the reality of such severance is poignant indeed minimized only by the thought that I always did my best in the interest of our country and the forestry profession. "I cease to be an employee of our bureau, but my love for forestry will always remain, as well as the warm association I had with you. Above all, of course, I wish to thank you and those who have worked with me directly during all these years for their cooperation, and those other co-workers in the Bureau with whom I have come in contact, for all the help, courtesy and understanding extended to me. "This severance is, however, not the partPage 38 COOPERATIVE POLICY . . . (Continued from page 20) need of a forest. It is perhaps only in this way that we can enlist the support of almost everybody, the rich and the poor, the men and the women, and probably even going to the extent of winning the sympathy of our legislators, who are empowered to formulate our laws and to appropriate our revenues and taxes for such projects deemed necessary for public improvements. Once public sentiment on the preservation of our forests is created, the continuous existence of the Philippine Forests is assured. Conclusion In the furtherance of forestry in the Islands, an individual can cooperate with the government in many ways without the expense of his personal money, yet the help he has made for the cause of forest conser• vation finds no equal in money value. SOME ANTIMALARIAL ... (Continued from page 24) Sollmann, "Quinine, Other Cinchona Alkaloids and Other Anti-malarial Drugs", Manual ol Pharmacology, 7th Ed., 504-24. Taylor, N., Cinchona in Java, New York: Greenberg, 1945, 79pp. Wood, H., "United States Dispensatory, 24th Ed., 1342-44, 1947. Woodward, ~- B. and Doering, W. E., "Total Synthesis of Quinine", Journal ol American Chemical Society, 66:849, 1944. Wiselogle, A Survey ol Antimalarial Drugs, Vol 1, 1941-45. Vale~ela, et al., "Constituents, Uses, and Phannacopeias of Some Philippine Medicinal Plants", Philippine Journal of Forestry, 6:39, 1949. "Daraprim: New Antimalarial Drug", Science News Letter, November 22, 1952. ing of my ways from yours. I find my mind and body still responsive to our work and I believe I can still be of service to forest users in a private way. • • *" Tito will stay in Manila for a while to work his way privately helping forest users as mentioned in the last quoted paragraph above. He will open his office as Consulting Forester at Capitol Theater Building, R-205, 31 Escolta, P.O. Box 1836, Manila. FORESTRY LEAVES