MANILA, Philippines--Green activists have asked Environment Secretary Lito Atienza to recall a permit allowing the cutting of more than 4,000 trees in Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park in Negros Occidental to make way for a geothermal project.

"He should recall the permit," Rustico Biñas, a member of the Save the Mt. Kanlaon Coalition, said in an interview. "It's our moral obligation to stop cutting trees."

Atienza could not be reached for comment Saturday.

The coalition has fiercely opposed the geothermal project of the Philippine National Oil Co.-Energy Development Corp., and warned that the cutting of trees could be the start of the park's destruction.

The park used to have a 24,000-hectare forest cover but only 9,000 hectares of that now remain, according to Biñas.

"We will not only be cutting down trees but we'll be endangering the flora and fauna, and then of course the clean water sources," he said.

The PNOC-EDC is set to cut down 4,213 trees in a 12.5-hectare site in the park preparatory to the construction of roads and other infrastructure, according to the coalition.

The 12.5 hectares are part of a 169-hectare buffer zone allotted to the PNOC-EDC for its geothermal exploration under Republic Act No. 9154, or the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park Act, it said.

The provincial board of Negros Occidental approved in May the company's entry into the buffer zone.

The PNOC-EDC has vowed to plant trees in the project site in the face of strong opposition from environmentalists, the Church and civil society groups. This was a condition set by the provincial board for the firm's entry into the buffer zone.

The Northern Negros Geothermal Power Development Project hopes to generate at least 40 megawatts of electricity to supply the power needs of the province and nearby Panay island.