Tree-cutting for Cebu pork projects stopped

CEBU CITY—The trees are safe for now.

Environment Secretary Ramon Paje recalled the special cutting permit issued to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) that would allow the DPWH to cut three remaining trees in Barangay Inoburan, Naga City.

Paje also ordered Isabelo Montejo, DENR director for Central Visayas, to deny the application for special tree cutting permit for San Fernando town. The DPWH had yet to apply for a permit in Carcar.

The directive was verbally relayed by Paje in a phone call to Montejo on Friday.

Montejo wrote a letter to Ador Canlas, DPWH director for Central Visayas, to inform Canlas about Paje’s order.

The order was issued three days after the DPWH on Tuesday started cutting down 88 trees in Naga, San Fernando and Carcar that had been tagged by DENR men as rotting.

Four of seven century-old acacia trees in Barangay Tinaan, Naga City had already been cut down.

The cutting was supposed to resume at 9 p.m. on Thursday but this was called off after two environmentalists climbed up the acacia trees and tied themselves to the trunks to prevent the cutting.

Environmentalists are opposing the cutting of the 88 trees, which were among 154 that are affected by a 15-km road widening project that covers Naga, San Fernando and Carcar.

The project is worth P1.2 billion and was funded by the pork barrel funds of former congressmen Eduardo Gullas of Cebu’s first district and Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City south district.

According to Montejo, the DPWH was issued a special tree cutting permit in October last year.

The permit allowed the cutting of 42 trees, including seven century-old acacia trees and the earth balling of 96 trees.

The permit, however, disallowed the cutting of 16 acacia trees which would instead be saved.

The cutting did not push through after the DENR required the DPWH to conduct a public hearing in the wake of strong opposition against the tree-cutting.

In June, a century-old tree fell in Barangay Balud, San Fernando town, while another fell in Carcar City in July.

The two incidents prompted the DENR to inspect old trees in Naga, San Fernando and Carcar.

Foresters tagged a total of 88 trees—77 in San Fernando, seven in Naga and four in Carcar—as “diseased and rotting.”

The DENR decided to cut the trees with the help of DPWH personnel.