Various groups to join annual tree planting project in Leyte town

TACLOBAN CITY, Sept. 2 (PNA) -- The annual tree planting project of the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster sa Pilipinas (KBP), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) will be held on Saturday in Tanghas village, Tolosa, Leyte.

The 2016 Oplan Broadcastreeing Project is in support of the National Greening Program (NGP) of the government that started a few years back. A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was inked between DILG and KBP for this annual event.

This year, 1,000 trees will be planted in the beach forest of Tanghas provided by DENR. The Philippine National Police (PNP); Tacloban Filipino-Chinese chamber of Commerce, Inc.; RADNET; 

DELTA Fire Brigade; the local government unit of Tolosa and other stakeholders signified their support to the event.

Last year, a thousand trees were also planted in the same village. Josephine Agustin of the DENR NGCP office suggested the need to plant more trees in Tanghas since only 80 percent of newly-planted trees survive.

A short program is prepared which include a MOA signing between DILG, Tolosa LGU represented by Mayor Edwin Ocana and the village chief of Tanghas that the latter will oversee the trees planted in the area.

Other chapters of the KBP in Eastern Visayas will also have their tree planting activities in the middle of the month of September.

The areas selected by the DENR for the activity are part of the DENR's one billion mangrove and beach forest development project under the NGP aimed at protecting disaster-risk areas in the region.

A big part of Tolosa's beach forest was badly damaged after super typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) decimated Eastern Visayas on Nov. 8, 2013. (PNA)

LAP/SQM/VICKY C. ARNAIZ/EGR