By Mar T. Supnad
BATAAN – In celebration of the World Bamboo Day, personnel of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Office led by their provincial environment and natural resources officer (PENRO) Raul H. Mamac, planted bamboo seedlings and conducted coastal clean-up today in the towns of Hermosa and Bagac.
“We have had a program attended by limited persons with CENRO Dinalupihan at Hermosa Water District, attended to by their Manager and conducted bamboo planting along Almacen river and at the same time we initiated coastal clean up in support for the international coastal clean up celebration,” Mamac said.
Mamac said some 12 hectares were cleaned up with silt containment in the area which is located at the mouth of Almacen river in barangay Pulo, Orani town.
In Bagac, men and women personnel of CENRO ascended all the way to the mountainous area of sitio Ungot where they also planted bamboo seedlings, braving the scorching heat of the sun.
Bagac town is one of the major producers of bamboo in Bataan.
Earlier, DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu has vowed to increase bamboo seedling planting under the National Greening Program (NGP) from 20 percent to 40 to 45 percent due to what they call high survival rate and usability (of bamboo) as compared to other tree or plant seedlings.
The Department of Trade and Industry says that bamboo products have ready markets, such as in China with P40 billion industry in that country.