Volunteers plant giant bamboo around Calapan City’s Calauangan Lake

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CITY OF CALAPAN – More than 100 volunteers planted giant bamboo propagules around this city’s Calauangan Lake to mark “Bamboo Volunteer Day” on Monday, May 1.

Volunteers of the “Bamboo for Sustainable Living” program  planted 60 of the propagules and learned more about bamboos from guests from Bamboo Warriors Philippines (BWP).

The event kicked off with a motorcade from the city pavilion to Barangay (village) Canubing 1, one of the five villages around Calauangan Lake.

Stakeholders have been trying to protect the lake from degradation since it is considered a hidden gem among tourists and travelers.

BWP is a year-old private initiative which was convened by Clarita Carlos, former national security adviser, along  with her friends, colleagues and other retirees, to take on the mission of reforesting the country through “Kawayan ng Bayan” (bamboo of the nation) as “consolidator of initiatives,” said Aurma Manlangit, the executive director, in an interview on Monday.

”We are promoting the importance of bamboo in restoring degraded areas around Caluangan Lake, and despite the scorching sun, we were able to plant 60 giant bamboo cuttings, with some reserved for future planting by the village,” said Marius Panahon, overall coordinator of the event and coordinator of the city’s Caluangan Lake Development.

In October last year, aligned with the city’s vision 2031 of Green City of Calapan Program, and on the 100th day in position of City Mayor Malou Morillo, at least 100 bamboo trees were also planted around the lake and nearby Baruyan river.

Also on Monday, Labor Day, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration scholars and parents, with some graduate students from the University of Batangas, also planted 40 bamboo trees as tribute to overseas Filipino workers.

This was followed by a panel discussion in Canubing 1 on the advantages and disadvantages of using bamboo, innovations in bamboo products, and bamboo as a tool for sustainable living.

In the afternoon, a seminar on the basic techniques of bamboo propagation was held at Kalap Hall of the City College of Calapan.

Bamboo is becoming popular for its versatility in usage and prospects for livelihood in two to three years, in addition to addressing climate change, said Panahon.

“Among the gains from the Bamboo Volunteer Day is that we had a German dive resort owner from Puerto Galera in attendance, who got interested in planting bamboo in his two-hectare property in a nearby town, too,” said Jett Bonoan Reyes,  BWP corporate secretary.

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