Ferliza C.
Contratista
C EBU CITY, May 21(PIA)— Reforested areas in Central Visayas is
now at 84 percent of the targeted area for reforestation.
In a Kapihan sa PIA recently, Department of Environment and
Natural Resources (DENR-7) information officer Eddie Llamedo said the
agency has reforested 66,000 hectares in the four provinces since the
start of the National Greening Program (NGP) in 2011.
Llamedo added DENR-7 aimed to reforest some 75,000
hectares In its six year of implementation involving 207 people's
organizations in the region.
According to Llamedo NGP budget in the region already reached
billions since each reforested hectare costs more or less P18,000 each with a
minimum of 575 trees. Each tree costs P27.24.
In terms of seedling production, the agency recorded recorded
3% excess for seedling production in this year’s National Greening
Program (NGP) target.
DENR-7 managed to produce 11,890,701 seedlings for 2015; 3% higher
for the year’s target of 11,557,500.
According toDENR's latest data, Negros Oriental recorded the
highest with 6,918,185 seedlings followed by Bohol with 2,859,500
while Cebu produced 1,987,659 and Siquijor with 125,357
seedlings.
The NGP is a massive rehabilitation program of the government
established by virtue of Executive no. 26 issued on February 24, 2011 by
President Benigno C. Aquino III. It seeks to grow 1.5 million trees in 1.5
million hectares nationwide within a period of six years from 2011 to 2016.
(mbcn/fcc/PIA7-Cebu/ with reports from Joshua Cabonilla, CNU Devcom
Intern)