PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan, Philippines—President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has declared Mt. Mantalingahan in the southern mainland of Palawan as a protected area, securing some 120,000 hectares of mostly old-growth forest in an area severely threatened by mining projects and illegal logging.
Conservation International Philippines, a nonprofit group that facilitated several years of scientific surveys, consultation with stakeholders, and organizing activities, announced in a statement Saturday the issuance by Malacañang of Proclamation 1815 signed by President Arroyo on June 23 which created the Mt. Mantalingahan Protected Landscape (MMPL).
The group described the proclamation as an “important step” in protecting the watersheds of southern Palawan and the highly diverse wildlife found in the area.
“The 33 watersheds of the MMPL will not only ensure the integrity and health of terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems but also importantly, the marine ecosystems, particularly along the South China Sea on the west and the Sulu Sea on the eastern flanks of Palawan where these watersheds drain,” Romeo Trono, CI country director, said in the statement furnished the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
He added that the delineation of Mt. Mantalingahan was in line with the Philippine government’s international commitment to expand the coverage of protected areas in the country in response to the global concern about climate change and the environment.
“The MMPL also adds to the country’s list of protected areas, and moves the Philippines closer to our 2010 target for the Convention of Biological Diversity. It is of high biodiversity importance, being one of the 17 terrestrial key biodiversity areas and one of 11 important bird areas in Palawan, as well as one of only 10 sites of the Alliance for Zero Extinction (AZE) in the Philippines,” Trono said.
The provincial government initiated the efforts to protect the area, declaring it in 1998 as an important site and creating a planning body composed of five municipalities in southern Palawan that shared its boundaries.
Several mining projects have been started in the region and conflicts have arisen among some communities that have openly supported mining companies and opposed Mantalingahan’s declaration as a protected area.
