LGU Maddela plants over 2,000 fruit bearing trees for NGP

By Thelma C. Bicarme

Wednesday 22nd of August 2012

MADDELA, Quirino, August 22 (PIA) -- The local government unit here has planted 2,690 cacao, coffee and mango seedlings in 2011 at the 13-hectare National Greening Program site located at the Maddela Waterfalls and Forest Resort Barangay Dumabato Sur.

Arnulfo B. Ramel, municipal planning and development coordinator and municipal environment and natural resources designate, said NGP site was awarded by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources through the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office last year.

Ramel said the management set-up is more on agro-forestry scheme where the fruit bearing trees were incorporated with forest tree species existing in the area.

“The objective is to maximize the use of the forestland especially those area within the NGP site that has a limited stock of desirable tree species and at the same time enhancing and protecting the natural resources existing in the area,” the MENRO explained.

To sustain the agro-forestry project, the LGU is involving other sectors in the tree planting activities such as the Philippine National Police (PNP) of Maddela Police Station, the Core Shelter Assistance Project (CSAP) beneficiaries of Divisoria Norte, and other sectors.

As of this writing, around 70 per cent of the area was already planted with trees.

For 2012, the LGU has established a municipal agro-forestry plantation site called Fruit-Orchard-Pomelo, at the Municipal Sanitary Landfill Site, Balligui, Maddela, Quirino.

The site which covers a total land area of 2.5 hectares will be planted with pomelo (Red Chandler). As of this date, the LGU employees have already planted around 600 seedlings.

Further, Ramel said the LGU is responsible in the maintenance and management of the NGP and SLF sites which will eventually become an economic enterprise of the municipality and will be a showcase of the agro-forestry development program. (TCB/PIA 2, Quirino)