ILOILO City – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Region 6 approved three Forest Land Use Plans (FLUPs) for the municipalities of Maayon and Pontevedra in Capiz and the island province of Guimaras.
Making an FLUP is a collaborative process between DENR and local government units (LGUs).
It involves planning and allocating forests and forest lands for the purpose of protecting, developing and managing forest and forestlands as natural resource assets.
“Crafting out a Forest Land Use Plan requires technical capability and entails tedious processes,” said DENR regional head Jim O Sampulna. “We are talking here of defining your resources, what kind of forestlands you have and many details for inclusion which would impact on your planning methods as well.”
The FLUPs for the areas took almost a year to finish, the DENR said.
Sampulna led the signing of the FLUPs together with the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office heads Bernabe Garnace (Capiz) and Vicente Sardina (Guimaras).
Christian Nagaynay from the Department of Interior and Local Government Region 6 attended the signing on behalf of regional director Anthony Nuyda.
Among those who attended the signing were Maayon mayor Wilfredo Borres and vice mayor Weldie Apolinario Jr., Pontevedra mayor Esteban Evan Contreras and vice mayor Nelson Gerardo Oquendo Jr. and Guimaras governor Samuel Gumarin.
Guimaras is the first province in the region with an approved FLUP. The plan covers all of its five towns: Buenavista, Jordan, Sibunag, San Lorenzo, and Nueva Valencia.
“FLUP is one of the tools that we will be utilizing to safeguard our environment. With the assistance of DENR 6, we will make sure that implementation of these plans will be a success in the province,” said Gumarin.
The Local Government Code of 1991 states that all LGUs have to ensure ecologically-sound management of their natural resources for public safety, welfare and sustainable socio-economic development.
After the FLUP approval, a memorandum of agreement was signed. It spelled out the obligations of the DENR and the LGUs in effectively co-managing the forestlands and forest resources.
DENR Region 6 has approved 21 FLUPs since 2014 in the different areas in Western Visayas. The agency is in the process of conducting a technical review for five FLUPs in the municipalities of San Dionisio, Sara, San Rafael, Batad and Lemery in the province of Iloilo.(With a report from DENR 6/PN)
