Massive mangrove planting in Bulacan coast mulled

HAGONOY, Bulacan—Hammered by devastating storm surges, the coastal area of this fishing town will soon get its need protection.

This came as the Provincial Government of Bulacan gear up for massive mangrove planting before the end of the year.

The said mangrove planting will follow the planned tree planting activities on the eastern part of the province.

Governor Wilhelmino Alvarado said plans have been laid for the massive tree and mangrove planting activities in the province.

He said that tree planting is set to be implemented this rainy season.

Target areas for tree planting includes watershed and river banks, especially the more than 50 kilometer stretch of the Angat River that drains to the Manila Bay.

He said that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources have already pledge more than 30,000 seedlings to be planted in the province as part of the implementation of the National Greening Program (NGP).

Additional seedling will be supplied by the provincial government and non-governmental organizations.

Alvarado noted that aside from different species of bamboos that will be planted along river banks, they will also plant fruit bearing trees.

For the coastal areas of Bulacan, they will also conduct massive mangrove planting to serve as barrier of coastal communities from devastating effects of storm surges.

As former mayor of this town, the governor specifically mentioned its coastal area which has been reclaimed by the sea in the last five years.

“Malaki na ang nasisirang mga palaisdaan sa Hagonoy dahil sa storm surge,” he said noting that it is one of the impacts of climate change.

Earlier, Mayor Raulito Manlapaz of this town vowed to rehabilitate over 1,000 hectares of fishpond on the coast of this town which were washed out.

Manlapaz’s move came after residents of the coastal villages of Pugad and Tibaguin here reiterated their call after the onslaught of typhoon Glenda.

The residents noted that about 60 houses in the two villages were totally damaged by storm surge spawned by typhoon Glenda.

They also stressed that six year ago, storm surges are unknown to them because at that time, dikes of the more that 200 hectares municipal fishpond fronting the Manila are still intact.

However, the said fishpond was abandoned by its operator and its dikes were washed out by waves in the years that followed.

Today, the coastal villages of Pugad and Tibaguin are usually bear the brunt of storm surges when there is typhoon.  Dino Balabo