The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) 12 targets 288 kilometers of the national road network of South Cotabato as part of its Urban Greening Program for this year.
“The urban greening program covers the lower and upper valleys of the province passing through the 10 towns and lone city of the province,” Forester Efren Hiballer, DENR 12 National Greening Program (NGP) Provincial Coordinator, disclosed during the meeting of the Philippine League of Local Environment and Natural Resources (PLLENRO) held at Kalsangi Club House, Dole Phils., Polomolok recently.
Hiballer added that the budget for the program is P4,000.00 per kilometer for both sides of the highway or a total of P 1,152,000.00 and its covers site development/social development, protection maintenance and plantation protection activities.
Both sides of the highway will be planted with ornamental plants with a 5-meter distance between them based on the mechanics or standard set by DENR 12.
City or Municipal LGUs will plant ornamental plants of their own choice to create an identity.
Koronadal City, the province’s capital and lone component city, will plant caballero, adelfa and Eugenia.
In the first district, Polomolok chose golden shower and bougainvillea; Tampakan bougainvillea (international white and pink-white combination) and pandakaki, and Tupi bougainvillea;
Likewise in the second district, Banga will plant palm and bougainvillea; Norala caballero and bougainvillea;Sto. Nino bougainvillea, pandakai (yellow and green), eugenia, gumamela; T’boli eugenia; Lake Sebu bougainvillea (international white); and, Tantangan red palm;
Surallah which has two routes chose white bougainvillea, hibiscus (gumamela assorted colors) from from its town proper to Lake Sebu, and eugenia (trimmed at 4-5 feet tall), foxtail palm and royal palm from its town proper to Sto. Nino.
PLLENRO, represented by its President T’boli MENRO Julian Asion, is the contractor of the project as decided during the meeting and will sign a Memorandum of Agreement with DENR 12 to formalize the agreement.
DENR 12 will initially download 15% of the budget to PLLENRO for social mobilization.
With the long dry spell due to the forecasted “el Niño” phenomenon that will delay the monsoon rains in the coming months of May and June, Forester Leonisa Alfaro of PAMB-AVPL said that planting of the ornamental plants might be delayed.
This is to assure that the planted materials will have a high rate of survival, Alfaro stressed.
