BACOLOD CITY, Philippines--To fulfill its commitment to preserve the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park as it drills geothermal energy in the parks' buffer zone, the Energy Development Corp. will use premium endemic species in the park.

The reforestation strategy is called "rainforestation," according to Erwin Magallanes, environmental senior supervisor of EDC's Northern Negros Geothermal Production Field (NNGPF).

The Catholic Church and some environment groups in Negros Occidental have opposed EDC's entry into the forest buffer zone in Bago City to tap more geothermal power, saying the cutting of trees in the area would destroy an irreplaceable rich biodiversity.

Some concerned Negrenses went a step further by going to court seeking to stop EDC's operations at the buffer zone. The case is now pending before the Bacolod Regional Trial Court.

By drilling at the buffer zone, the firm hopes to augment the steam supply of its Northern Negros Geothermal Production Field by 25 to 30 megawatts in 2010-2011, according to Magallanes.

EDC has committed to reforest 400 hectares or plant about 160,000 trees within Mount Kanlaon for the next five years as part of the stringent conditions set by the Negros Occidental provincial government for its entry into the buffer zone.

"No fast growing or exotic tree species will be planted on those 400 hectares. We will only plant a variety of prime seedlings which are found inside the park to ensure biodiversity conservation and restoration of ecosystem functions in Mt. Kanlaon," Magallanes said.

"These premium species will consist of the indigenous tree species found inside the Mount Kanlaon Natural Park and propagated in our nursery in Northern Negros Geothermal Production Field," he said.

EDC has established a nursery inside the production field that already has 14 of these prime indigenous species, including the first man-made Almaciga plantation in the country. These are being maintained using the mist irrigation system. Mother trees that would serve as sources of seeds for natural regeneration and production of reforestation planting materials would be generated in this nursery, he said.

"We will replicate in Mt. Kanlaon what we did in Mt. Apo," Magallanes added.

Studies showed that monoculture reforestation or the process of planting exotic species would not actually produce the ecological benefits needed, Magallanes said.

"On the other hand, rainforestation is an effective way of bringing back our original forests, which is what we aim to achieve in Mt. Kanlaon," he said.

Rainforestation is just one of EDC's environmental plans for the MKNP buffer zone, according to Magallanes.

The company laid out its mitigating measures to minimize the impact of its operations on the environment, which included its efforts to save as many trees as it could inside the buffer zone, he said.

"We have rerouted our paths several times just to avoid as many trees as possible. Out of the ceiling of 34 big trees allowed by the province, we have only affected 12 big trees so far and we are sure to cut below this ceiling. We are confident that we will be able to save at least a thousand more from the 4,213 trees that are allowed in our permit," Magallanes said.

EDC has already awarded reforestation contracts for 95 hectares to the Minoyan Integrated Forest Protection Farmers' Association and Minoyan Agrarian Reform Association as part of the 400 hectares that the company committed to reforest in a span of five years.

Both have started their site preparation. They would start planting in the next few days, Magallanes said.

This would bring to 135 hectares the total number of reforested areas that EDC would be able to complete by the end of 2008, in compliance with the Memorandum of Agreement that the company signed with the provincial government, he said.

EDC advanced its reforestation for its expansion in the Mount Kanlaon buffer zone when it established the other 40 hectares in 2007, he said.

EDC has been aiming to finish its rainforestation project within the next two years to allow time for plantation maintenance for the remaining three years and ensure survival of planted trees, he said.

The company reforested 536 hectares, so far, and planted 650,000 trees since 1994, Magallanes added.