By DANNY O.SAGUN
PIA-Pangasinan Infocenter

SAN FABIAN – Some 12,000 seedlings were planted last Friday along major national highways in Pangasinan as a major activity under the Green Philippine Highways (GPH) project of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in coordination with local government units, national government agencies and non-government organizations.

In this town alone, some 700 seedlings were planted along the San Fabian-La Union highway covering a stretch of six barangays: Tempra Guilig, Tococ, Mabilao, Alacan, Tiblong and Rabon .

OIC-Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer Rogel Pimentel, who personally took charge of the tree-planting activity here, said that the three community environment and natural resources offices (CENRO) based in the cities of Dagupan, Urdaneta, and Alaminos also conducted their own tree-planting activities along the national roads in Labrador, Sual, Bonuan area in Dagupan City, and Urdaneta City.

The seedlings included those of fruit trees, ornamental plants and forest trees, he said. Both sides of the road were planted with the seedlings.

Mayo Mojamito Libunao, who led his townmates in the activity, said he had witnessed several tree-planting activities in the past but with meager success rate but expressed hope the Green Philippine Highways project will be different and will be sustained.

`“Planting is just one accomplishment, growing them is another thing,” he told the Philippine Information Agency shortly before he signed a memorandum of agreement with the DENR along with local officials and NGO representatives as witnesses right in barangay Rabon where the activity culminated.

He asked the DENR to conduct a periodic performance review on the plants’ survival rate. He bared that a similar tree planting activity has been going on in this town where a modest reward of P5 is given to a caretaker for every seedling surviving after six months and P10 for a surviving tree after a year.

Similar tree planting activities were held in other parts of the country.

The national government aims to provide a clean and healthy environment thru the GPH project, an integral part of the Beat the Odds program of the Arroyo administration.