Pangasinan board says no to tree cutting

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan—The 770 trees left standing along the stretch of Manila North Road from Rosales town to Sison town in Pangasinan province may yet be saved after the provincial board on Monday filed a resolution opposing the cutting of trees along the national and local roads in the province.

The resolution, authored by Board Member Generoso Tulagan, said all trees should be protected and nurtured because they contribute to a balanced ecosystem.

Board Member Alfonso Bince Jr. said the resolution was a transition measure that would lead to an ordinance prohibiting tree cutting along Pangasinan’s highways.

But in a position paper, the Ilocos regional office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said cutting the trees was “necessary” in order to widen the road.

The document, signed by DENR Regional Executive Director Samuel Peñafiel, said the tree cutting was sufficiently justified by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which is undertaking the widening project.

“As asserted by the DPWH, the cutting of trees is necessary to preserve public safety, particularly road safety,” Peñafiel said.

“The widening of Manila North Road, being a main thoroughfare, will significantly reduce carbon emission from vehicles, as traffic will be decongested and fuel will be used more efficiently. It is necessary that the affected trees be removed, as they are considered road hazards due to their proximity to the road. Such is a necessary consequence of development,” he said.

Peñafiel said the fallen trees would be replaced by thousands of seedlings. “These young trees have higher carbon absorption capabilities as they grow, and shall provide more forest cover,” he said.

The road-widening project will displace 1,829 trees but DPWH’s tree-cutting permit lapsed in February after it cut only 1,059 trees. The agency had earlier cut 321 trees using a separate tree-cutting permit.

The DENR, however, reviewed the plan and concluded that 255 of the 770 remaining trees could be spared because these are not on road sections that need to be paved. Yolanda Sotelo, Inquirer Northern Luzon