PLANTING MANGROVES. Fr. Mars Tan, director of the McKeough Marine Center of Xavier University -Ateneo de Cagayan, prepares his notes as he moderates a session on the 3rd Philippine Environment Summit in Cagayan de Oro City on Thursday (Feb. 27, 2020). The center is set to plant 70,000 mangroves along the Macajalar Bay covering Cagayan de Oro City and the coastal areas of Misamis Oriental province. (PNA photo by Nef Luczon)
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – The McKeough Marine Center of Xavier University - Ateneo de Cagayan will plant some 70,000 mangrove seedlings along the coastlines of Macajalar Bay as part of its two-year program.
Center director, Fr. Mars Tan, bared the plan during the 3rd Philippine Environment Summit here Thursday, noting that the activity was the result of three years of work, collating data on the status of mangrove forests along Macajalar Bay covering Cagayan de Oro and 11 coastal areas in Misamis Oriental.
Tan said the mangrove planting, expected to be carried out later this year, would highlight the importance of community and stakeholders' involvement in co-governing the country's natural resources.
As of 2018, only 195 hectares of mangrove forests were recorded in Misamis Oriental, compared to 440 hectares in 1950.
However, conversion to aquaculture ponds, resorts, and other commercial uses has contributed to the steady decline of mangrove
trees, according to the McKeough Marine Center study.
Tan also said that not all areas in Misamis Oriental coastlines are ideal for all mangrove species, as soil test results showed that some places can only be planted with specific species, such as the "pagatpat" variety.
“That is why in community co-governance, decisions are not made impulsively. There are a lot of factors that come into play, such as the science aspect of it, the social acceptability of it, the economic component of it, even the legal component of it,” Tan told the more than hundred summit audience at the Grand Caprice Restaurant and Convention Center here.
To prepare the fisherfolk community for the mangrove rehabilitation that will start within the year, the McKeough Marine Center has conducted a series of training courses to the communities, even inviting speakers from a successful mangrove community in Zamboanga Sibugay.
The center has also established three mangrove nurseries in Misamis Oriental, located in El Salvador City and the towns of Balingasag and Kinoguitan.
The McKeough Marine Center is the research and social development arm of the Ateneo de Cagayan in the field of marine science. (PNA)
