Reforestation with government fund

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Part of Forestry Leaves

Title: Reforestation with government fund
Language: English
Year: 1955
Rights
Fulltext: ~~ '1f/td ~?#led By JOSE VIADO Sr. Forester Bureau of Forestry INTRODUCTION Too often people cannot appreciate the value of a thing until they have lost it. History has fully demonstrated this in the case of forests. As man progressed and settled down to cultivate the soil, he began to consider the forest as a barrier and obstacle. The forest must give way to agriculture. This was demonstrated in the oldest seats of civilization in northern Africa, southern Europe, near East and the Orient. However, we need not go far for examples. Right here we have the cases of the denuded regions, the so-called oldest Spanish settlements, the llocos and Cebu. The people cut their forest without thinking of the future. They have never known, because nobody taught them, that in order to insure the permanence of agriculture in the lowland the upper slopes of the mountains must be kept for. ested. Nobody taught them the forest insures the continuous flow of water from springs. Nobody taught them that forest minimize soil erosion, tempers extreme climatic conditions and serves as windbreak. They did not know that forest and forest products can be cut and gathered and can be made to serve indefinitely the needs of the people if it could be allowed to regenerate itself. The people did not know that trees are crops that can be harvested and grow again. Nobody has shown to them the truth that trees are replaceable unlike ores and metals once mined are gone forever. These, the people in those denuded regions never learned inspite of their claim that theirs is the "first seat of civilization"! NOVEMBER, 1955 Within their lifetime they have seen the ef. feet of their own folly the result of their greed and selfishness--the destruction of their forest. Many of those old folks are the same people now complaining that the climate has become unbearably hotter, the water table has sunk deeper, the rivers that used to have clear flowing water now becomes muddy during rainy days, overflow its bank and deposit sand and gravels over the agricultural lands below causing incalculable damage to property allP public work. During the dry season, the rivers are dry. The land can no longer produce enough to feed the local population and the people are impoverished, they migrate to other places where there are still forests because there the soil is rich - there perhaps to repeat what they or their ancestors have done -destroy the forest. Indeed, people are hard to convince, and education is a slow process. ·rhe government had to do something to solve the problem. Annually, the rivers of the denuded regio_ns unleash their fury spreading havoc, devastation, suffering, death and misery. REFORESTATION WORK BEFORE WORLD WAR II These rivers must be tamed and their fury controlled Dams and levees are too expensive. Reforestation seems the - only practical solution. Thus, in 1910 the Bureau of Forestry started to study the possibility of reclaiming cogon lands by planting trees in the vicinity of the School of Forestry at Los Banos, Laguna. The result of trial plantPa1111 35 ing had been very encouraging and hundreds of species have been tried and found successful. Members of the legislature must have been so impressed with the possibility of planting barren lands that in 1916 passed Act 2649 appropriating Pl0,000.00 for reforesting the denuded and barren hills of the Government-owned Talisay-Minglanilla Friar Lands Estate in Cebu. Thus was established the Cebu Reforestation Project first such attempt in a big scale. This has proved a success inspite of difficulties due to the hos·· tile attitude of the squatters. This project proved to the skeptics that trees can be coaxed to grow in cogon and barren lands. The work was however, discontinued upon exhaustion of the fund. To obtain funds for reforestation was very difficult and it was only in 1919 that funds became available in the General Appropriation Act for this purpose. The amount was not much but it permitted the opening up of three more projects besides the maintenance of Cebu and Los Banos projects. Experimental plantings were carried on up to Ilocos provinces and Baguio. This limited appropriation continued in t.b.e annual budget up to 1926 and more convincing data were gathered proving that barren wastelands can be made to grow trees if the right species and proper methods are used. So in 1927 Act 3238 was passed appropriating P50,000.00 to continue the reforestation activities of the Bureau of Forestry. This made possible the opening up of four new projects including the Cinchona Plantation in B,ukidnon. This could not last long with nine projects to maintain so that in 1932 the maintenance of these projects had to be prnvided in the regular appropriation for the bureau again. This was barely enough and this condition had to drag on to 1936. Available record shows that P310,000.00 was the total amount granted during the five-year period. Greater impetus was given the cause of reforestation in 1937 when the legislature Page 36 passed Commonwealth Act No. 245 appropriating P258,198.00 for reforestation purposes. This has greatly increased the activities of the existing projects. Planting surveys were conducted to determine areas that need immediate establishment of reforestation projects. As a result of these surveys, twelve new projects were established. 1938 Com. Acts Nos. 300 and 304 provided a total of Pl,256,370.00 to continue the reforestation work already started. Five more new projects were established and a new Division of Reclamation and Reforestation was organized in the Bureau of Forestry. This work has become a major activity of the government. The people have awakened to the need of keeping the mountain slopes forested and they could see in the reforestation projects that forest can be made to grow again on barren lands. In 1941 a total amount of Pl,689,710.00 had been appropriated for reforestation. The reforestation program of the Government with such readiness of Congress to cooperate could not but succeed. Before the outbreak of World War II the status of Reforestation work by the government was as follows: Number of reforestation projects in operation ................... 35 Areas extensively studied 2, 111.070 Has. Areas intensively studied 1,851.960 Has. Found needing reforestation 972,670 Has. Areas to be reforested in the 35 projects . . . . 476,692 Has. Areas of established plantations ...... . 27,983 Has. Area of Cinchona Plantation ....... . 344 Has. Amount so far spent - over 3-1/2 million pesos The last war practically destroyed all the improvements and plantations already established The work of decades of hard work and sacrifices went up in smoke or appropriated for use by the enemy aggravated by the activities of the looters and evacuees who must live at any cost. FORESTRY LEA VBS REFORESTATION AFTER THE WAR After the war reforestation work could not be resumed immediately. It was not until January 1946 when funds became available for the purpose. 1'216,000.00 had been released to be spent up to June 30, 1946. Twenty-nine projects were reopened and work had to start from scratch. Where no buildings remained temporary huts had to be made to shelter the project personnel. Work in the projects consisted in retrieving looted property, fixing water systems, cleaning former nurseries or establishing new sites where the old nurseries were over-grown with seed· lings left in the seed beds, taking stock of what was left of the project after the war. For fiscal year 1947 P280,000.00 was appropriated under Rep. Act No. 80 for reforestation. The Cinchona Plantation in Bukidnon was granted P144,000.00 as revolving fund. During the year, 620 hectares were planted and 117,053 square meters of nursery space used REFORESTATION FUND (REP. ACT NO. 115) Conscious of the necessity of a steady source of fund to finance the reforestation activities of the government, Congress enacted Rep. Act No. 115 constituting a Reforestation Fund by leyying PO.SO on every cubic meter of first and second groups timber and P0.40 on every cubic meter of third and fourth groups timber cut out and removed from any public forest for commercial purposes. This Act took effect on June 7, 194 7 and collections are shown below by fiscal year: Fiscal Year 1947-1948 1948-1949 1949-1950 1950-1951 1951-1952 1952-1953 1953-1954 TOTAL NOVEMBER, 1955 Coliection P437,515.71 862,985.20 908,087.73 1, 192,390.32 1,310,255.44 1,025,694.52 1,440,419.91 P7, 177 ,348.83 From the fiscal year 1947-1948 to the fiscal year ending June 30, 1954, an average expenditure in round figure of P890,000.00 had been spent every year. This, certainly is an impressive figure based upon pre-war values. But considering that today salaries and wages have risen to a level four times that of pre-war level, that amount is certainly not much. However, the following data is here presented to show the status of the reforestation work today: Number of reforestation project in operation Number of nurseries for 38 12 cooperative planting Total area of nurseries ..... Total area of existing plantations left after the war •.. 174 H$s. 5,230 Has. Area of plantations established after the war . . .... 6,470 Has. Total area of plantation now under maintenance ...... 11,700 Has. For a more comprehensive idea on magnitude and progress of reforestation following table is presented: Cable Address: BENGUETCON Telephone: 3-34-08 Purchasing Office Tel. 3-34-07 BENGUET CONSOLIDATED MINING CO. P.O. Box 817 Manila, Philippines . . . the the = Pap.37 TABLE SHOWING THE REFORESTATION PROJECTS AND THEIR ACCOMPLISHMENTS Name of Reforestation Projects 1. Makiling 2. Cebu 3. Caniaw 4. Arayat 5. lmpalutao 6. Ambuklao 7. Cinchona 8. Paraiso 9. Salinas 10. San Jose 11. Siquijor 12. Carranglan · 13. Marinduque 14. ltogon Los Banos, Laguna Camp 7, Cebu Bantay, Ilocos Sur Pampanga lmpasugong, Bukidnon Bokod, Benguet, Mt. Province Kaatoan, Malaybalay, Bukidnon Nueva Era, I. Norte Pingkian, N. Vizcaya San Jose, N. Ecija Larena, Siquijor Carranglan, N. Ecija Boac, Marinduque ltogon, Benguet, Mt. Province 15. Bohol Carmen, Bohol 16. Bulusan Bulusan, Sorsogon 17. Cabunagan Bauko, Mt. Province 18. Aringay Pugo, La Union 19. Roosevelt Dinalupihan, Bataan 20. Magat Bagabag, N. Ecija 21. Lagangilang Lagangilang, Abra 22. Kennon Road Benguet, Mt. Province 23. Caillaon Murcia, Neg. Occ. 24. Sto. Tomas San Marcelino, Zambales 25. Baguio · Benguet, Mt. Province 26. Consuelo Sta. Fe, N. Vizcaya 27. Nasiping Gattaran, Cagayan 28. Malaybalay Malaybalay, Bukidnon 29. Manleluag Mangatarem, Pangasinan 30. Bacnotan Bacnotan, La Union 31. Nabua Nabua, Cam. Sur 32. Liuanag Turnauini, Isabela 33. Dingle Dingle, lloilo 34. Malasag Cagayan, Or. Misamis 35. Sibalom Sibalom, Antique 36. Sasilan . . Basilan City 37. 'Sta. Cedlia .. Tagkawayan, Quezon 38. Ariakan Gingoog,' Or. Misamis 12 Forest Nurseries Year establi1hed 1910 1916 1919 1919 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1931 1937 1937 1937 1937 1937 1937 1937 1938 1938 1938 1938 1938 1938 1938 1938 1935 1939 1939 1939 1948 1949 1949 1949 1949 1949 1951 1953 1953 Area of I Propoaed Area to Nursery be refor( Sq. M.) ested 77,631 5,844 54,216 15,000 29,998 4,000 71,260 45,101 56,681 68,764 11,054 77,286 190,000 13,200 98,559 10,000 42,816 17,500 3,390 10,000 265000 5,234 22,890 11,465 2,333 160,000 55,690 27,813 40,400 30,000 81,496 2,885 6,885 58,499 15,000 15,866 16-,000 3,500 99,875 3,900 2,690 35,236 3,710 1,000 29,980 3,192 26,160 5,400 20,000 488 14,800 3,480 32,500 2,920 3,Q.73 27,380 14,930 1,480 20,050 38,500 5,200 6,120 10,000 30,560 12,000 4,720 1,750 91,700 115 1,500 5,100 260 900 5,620 15,000 16,000 3,900 Area Actually Planted (Has.) 438 749 347 537 330 376 453 705 402 596 300 633 138 420 633 52 913 69 127 138 353 476 293 119 804 101 200 323 26 16 59 127 149 121 34 102 15 26 Percen tage 11.2 27.8 0.9 14.4 33 12.2 4.9 2.7 7.4 2.9 61.5 4.2 3.9 1.3 2.1 1.4 3.3 A 8.5 .6 9.1 9 4.2 1.1 2.6 .8 4.2 18.5 2.8 13.9 3.9 2.4 51.7 13.4 .6 .6 .3 TOTAL ......... 1,744,992* 501,914 11,700 2.3 • The nursery area of Cinchona is not included. It will be noted from the foregoing table that there at~ 'only 11, 700 hectares so fer 'planted out of about half a million hectares embraced in, the 38 reforestation projects. Pap38 Yet, this total area is not the only area that needs to be reforested. Those who are prone to look at statistics will call attention to the existence of 5,073,300 hectares of open grassFORESTRY LBAVES lands scattered throughout the country and say without hesitation that this vast tracts of wasteland should be reforested. When they point to the whole five million hectares and see what has been planted so far, they begin to fold under their own delusion and despair, saying and pointing an accusing finger upon the Bureau of Forestry that "reforestation in the Philippines is a "FAILURE". It will take centuries to reforest. This is unfair. Of the total area of 5,073,300 hectares of open grassland representing 17.06% of the land area of the Philippines, 2,727,200 or 9.17 % are potential agricultural lands, 955,500 or 3.21 % are pasture lands and 1,390,600 or 4.68 % are considered for reforestation. Even this area may reveal upon intensive planting survey that a portion may be non-plantable because it is bare rocks or too steep and another portion may not need artificial planting because of the presence of some mother trees there are plenty of small natural reproductions. , The following table shows the location by provinces of areas that are classified as needed for reforestation, as compiled by the Division of Land Classification of the Bureau of Forestry: TABLE SHOWING AREAS TO BE REFORESTED AND PERCENTAGE BASED ON LAND AREA BY PROVINCES REFORESTATION Province Area Per Cent 1. Abra 22,300 5.85 2. Agusan & Butuan City 100 0.10 3. Albay & Legaspi City 29,300 11,36 4. Antique 31,000 11.57 5. Bataan 300 0.23 6. Batanes 7. Batangas & Lipa City 27,900 9.01 8. Bohol 76,900 9. Bukidnon 40,800 5~08 10. Bulacan 13,200 4.99 11. Cagayan 37,400 4.16 12. Camarines Norte 13. Camarines Sur & Naga City 3,200 0.60 14. Capiz & Roxas City 22,400 5.08 15. Catanduanes 16. Cavite & Cities of Cavite and Tagaytay 6,800 5.28 17. Cebu & Cebu City 83,300 17.U 18. Cotabato 71,400 3.11 19. Davao & Davao City 12,100 0.62 20. Ilocos Norte 37,400 11.04 21. Ilocos Sur 48,700 18.14 22. Iloilo & Iloilo City 23,600 4,45 23. Isabela 48,100 4.56 24. La Union 10,700 7.79 25. Laguna & San Pablo City 4,100 3.41 26. Lanao & Cities of Dansalan and Iligan 26,700 4.00 27. Leyte & Cities of Tacloban and Ormoc 5,500 0.69 28. Marinduque 2,500 2.72 29. Masbate 66,900 16.44 30. Mindoro Occidental 59,900 11.14 31. Mindoro Oriental 52,400 11.14 32. Misamis Occidental & Ozamiz City 3,400 1.64 33. Misamis Oriental & Cagayan de Oro City 5,600 1.43 34. Mt. Province & Baguio City 103,800 7.34 NOVEMBER, 1955 Pap 39 Province 35. Negros Occidental & Bacolod City 36. Negros Oriental & Dumaguete City Area 32,300 31,200 60,500 35,100 26,300 11,900 19,900 Per Cent 4.27 5.87 37. Nueva Ecija & Cabanatuan City 38. Nueva Vizcaya 39. Palawan 40. Pampanga 41. Pangasinan & Dagupan City 42. Quezon 43. Rizal & Cities of Manila, Pasay and Quezon 9,400 6,900 4,400 3,600 2,100 11.02 5.16 1.78 5.56 3.80 0.79 3.3.1 3.32 0.26 1.02 9.95 0.09 44. Romblon 45. Samar & Calbayog City 46. Sorsogon 47. Sulu 28,000 48. Surigao 49. Tarlac 50. Zambales 51. Zamboanga del Norte & Zamboanga City 700 81,800 28,100 15,700 15,000 26.89 7.71 1.82 1.82 52. Zamboanga del Sur & Basilan City TOT AL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,390,600 4.68 Many of the areas indicated above are not comprised in the present reforestation areas but the watersheds of the most destructive rivers -are all under the established projects. It is unthinkable to simultaneously reforest all the area indicated above out of present available funds. It would be spreading the work too thinly barely showing any tangible result. As a matter of fact even now we have too many projects. AN APPRAISAL A view of the whole situation will give one the impression that reforestation with government funds is too costly and too slow a process. But past experience has proven that it can be done and the writer honestly believes that the pace can be accelerated four times and the cost can be cut down to as low as Ploo;oo per hectare to establish a forest plantation, may be less. , The Bureau of Forestry before the war had to go begging for funds all the time and the work had been desultory and inconstant. Then as well as after the war much of the funds allotted were for construction of buildings, sheds, water systems, seedbeds, paths and ridges, purchase of equipment, supplies and materials so that plantings had to be necessarily much less. Once Page 40 the nurseries are rehabilitated then more plantings can be done. In the evaluation of the work many fail to see the other benefits that can be derived from the reforestation projects. These projects have easily become meccas for excursionists and are themselves parks where people go for study and recreation. Thousands visit our projects annually. Then too are the employment of hundreds nay thousands of men who, otherwise would be unemployed It is estimated that about one million hectares of open lands will need to be reforested all over the country but the writer maintains that present supply of technical men and with present funds available, reforestation should be confined, at least to the already intensively studied areas inside the watersheds of the principal destructive rivers in order to obtain the best result. These areas total to only about half million hectares. These areas will cost about P50,000,000.00 to reforest at the rate of Pl00.00 per hectare and at the rate of 4,000 hectares annually, it will take 125 years to complete the project. But every year the procedure and methods should be reviewed and studied (Continued on paie 44) FORESTRY LEAVES