BURNED. A tree shows its scar as a result of an eight-day forest fire on Mount Pulag in Kabayan, Benguet from Feb. 11 to 18. The blaze damaged more than 160,000 trees and saplings and more than 600 hectares of natural forest and national greening program area. (Photo by BFP-Kabayan Fire Station)
LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – A total of 899.53 hectares (ha) of natural forest and expanded National Greening Program (E-NGP) areas in this province was destroyed by fires from Jan. 6 to Feb. 18, an official of the Benguet Provincial Environmental and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) said on Wednesday.
During the joint Benguet Provincial and Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (DRRMC) meeting here, PENRO-Benguet chief Edgardo Flor said there were 12 fires in eight of the 13 towns --Bakun, Kibungan, Atok, Buguias, Tublay; all in Buguias; and Bokod, La Trinidad and Kabayan.
Under CENRO-Baguio’s jurisdiction, a total of 646.02 hectares were burned.
Kabayan recorded the biggest damage at 452.15 hectares of natural forest and 191.54 hectares of E-NGP area; La Trinidad recorded damage in 1.19 hectares forest land and 1.14 hectares of E-NGP area.
Kabayan is host to Luzon’s highest peak Mount Pulag.
Under CENRO-Buguias, a total of 243.64 hectares of forest and E-NGP area were burned.
The burned forest lands were recorded at Ampusongan proper (.5 ha); at the boundary of Sitio Ay-ay and Dacugan also in Ampusongan (.62 ha); Lubo, Kibungan (.53 ha); Caliking, Atok (2.53 ha); Topdac, Atok (71.88 ha); Sinacbat, Bakun (65 ha); Abatan, Buguias (.58 ha) and at Ambassador, Tublay (95 ha).
There were also seven hectares of E-NGP burned at Sinacbat, Bakun town.
Flor said the total damage in the 12 fires reached PHP2,077,290.
He, however, said the 199.68 hectares of E-NGP area which were included in the fire cost the government much more millions in pesos.
The government spent from seedling production to planting and other stages.
“From seedling production to the establishment, maintenance, ginastusan mo… some of them [trees] anlalaki na tapos biglang masusunog (you spent for…. some of the trees are already big and suddenly they will be burned),” he said.
Some were planted in 2011 when the NGP started, some in 2013 while others in 2015, he said.
Flor said one reason for the fires is the “kaingin” (slash and burn) practice of cattle raisers in the areas.
He said the lack of rain for several weeks already compounded the situation where Benguet forests are laden with pine trees that makes it more vulnerable to fire.
Flor said while they want to file charges against those responsible for the fires, they are having difficulty identifying people who started the burning.
Meanwhile, Governor Melchor Diclas said putting off wildfires on forests and mountains in Benguet poses a challenge.
“Hindi natin madala ang mga firefighting equipment natin dahil malalayo at matataas ang kabundukan natin dito sa Benguet (We cannot bring our firefighting equipment because of these areas are remote and the steep terrain),” he said.
The Kabayan fire that started on February 11 and died down after two days but due to the pine logs, it was reignited and went on to damage 160,000 pine seedlings and saplings on Mt. Pulag.
"Ang hirap kasi, sa weather natin, mahangin, nag-spread agad (The difficulty with the kind of weather that we have, the wind, [fire] spreads easily),” Diclas said.
Office of Civil Defense Cordillera director Albert Mogol said the Philippine Air Force can be tapped to control wildfire if only to stop their further destruction of the forest.
Mogol told the Philippine News Agency that it is important to have the people’s participation in preventing fire and other man-made calamities.
“The prevention and reduction of forest fires is a shared responsibility between the community, the local government units, and the different stakeholders," he said.
"Maganda ang convergence ng ibat-ibang agencies sa lahat ng bagay kaya nag iikot tayo kami para sa resilience caravan para magkaroon ng linkage ang mga stakeholders (Agencies working together on different things is good that is why we are going around for the resilience caravan to have a linkage of all stakeholders),” he added.
Flor, on the other hand, said they are doing their information, education campaign, especially at the far-flung communities to inform them of the need to prevent fires.
“Especially now that we are experiencing the El Niño, we hope nobody starts something that will lead to wildfire,” he said. (with a report from Joshua Elisha Soriano, OJT/PNA)
