It is common knowledge that the Philippines lies in the tropics, which means that we experience hot temperatures for most of the year. However, El Nino is real and within our midst. It’s getting hotter. Are we ready to face it?

According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), El Nino is the extensive warming of the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean’s surface waters that often occurs in the middle part of the year. It brings about changes in the circulation of the atmosphere in the tropics, affecting wind, pressure, and rainfall patterns.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration or PAGASA recently monitored that moderate El Nino persists in the Pacific. They are predicting it to gain strength in the coming months.

It is a significant threat to public safety as it endangers different sectors who are climate-sensitive such as agriculture, health, energy, and water resources to name a few. It would be attributed to below-normal rainfall in some parts of the country which can cause dry spells and droughts.

            “Plant more trees and conserve our water resources. Being wasteful must not be an option because everything is scarce in times like this. Food, water, and energy supplies that are vital to us will dwindle and it can be catastrophic if we don’t mitigate the possible effects of El Nino,” notes DENR 6 Regional Executive Director Livino B. Duran.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Region 6 thru its Regional Strategic Communication and Initiatives Group (RSCIG) in collaboration with its line bureau, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau, designed infographics so that the public may know more of this natural phenomenon. What can we do to prepare ourselves? There’s still time to spare.

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Published: 10 November 2023

For the sake of capacitating its Peoples Organizations (POs) on the mandatory government requirements, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has recently inked a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The collaboration is about adopting the Project called SEC Communication, Advocacy, and Network (SEC-CAN!) which also supports the Annual Investor Protection Week (IPW) activities slated for the second week of November 2023.

“Our partnership will not be limited to our Peoples Organizations (POs) but probably, we will be extending this to other permittees of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – for those purveyors of permits and other licensees who are required to have a SEC Registration because this is actually a mandatory requirement,” DENR 6 Regional Executive Director Livino B. Duran said.

The MOA however focuses on the POs which the DENR 6 aims to assist. Many of the POs are issued with the tenurial instrument called Community-Based Forest Management Agreement (CBFMA) by the Department which is good for 25 years and renewable for another 25 years. “Their legal identity, their SEC Registration should be updated for 50 years. If they fail to renew after 25 years, they are no longer eligible for renewal of their Agreement. This is the very reason why we wanted to help them,” Duran added.

RED Duran further called the POs as the “backbone of development in the rural areas” whose life activities revolved around implementation of DENR’s greening and livelihood projects which result in forest protection, biodiversity conservation and climate change adaptation. SEC Registration and other mandatory requirements (which include financial statements) are some of the things which the POs needed to have a mastery of, or they lose the chance to secure another 25 years in the future of their children and their community as a whole.

As of date, the DENR 6 has more than a hundred POs issued with CBFMA. Meanwhile, the DENR regional office had also issued one Protected Area Community-Based Resource Management Agreement (PACBARMA), and other agreements include Socialize Industrial Forest Management Agreement (SIFMA), and Industrial Forest Management Agreement (IFMA). Other permittees include wood processing plants and lumber dealers who also need the SEC Registration. All those issued with tenurial instruments are required to establish their legal personalities to be able to transact business with the government.

“With utmost appreciation, the Iloilo SEC Extension Office is very appreciative of the acceptance of the DENR in future collaborations with our Office. This MOA signing formalizes our collaborations henceforth, and the SEC will proudly accept any invite from your agency especially pertaining to financial literacy and advocacies with your Peoples Organization and your employees,” said Atty. Ma. Cristina T. Montelibano, regional director of SEC Iloilo.

The Peoples Organizations concerned will benefit from the trainings under the project which are designed to educate them on the fundamentals of investing, financial literacy, investor protection and investment scams.

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Published: 16 October 2023

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is undertaking a series of initiatives to formalize small-scale mining operations, recognizing their vital role in the industry. These initiatives are to be undertaken as the department undertakes a review of laws that cover small-scale mining, with the goal of modernizing industry standards and increased protection for small-scale miners.

DENR Undersecretary Carlos Primo David emphasized that these initiatives underscore the agency's dedication to responsible, inclusive, and globally competitive mining practices, all while ensuring the welfare and protection of small-scale miners. He stressed the importance of a progressive, step-by-step approach to formalization, with the ultimate goal of integrating small-scale miners into the broader mining sector.

“The small-scale miners are there. We have to bring them into the fold of the mining sector. The core of DENR's strategy lies in individually registering these small-scale miners, serving as the basis for a more organized structure,” said David.

“We’re looking to register small scale miners, individually, at first, followed by the establishment of a loose organization as the foundation for a more formal association. Sort of like a cooperative towards a Minahang Bayan registration.”

Legal recognition of small miners, according to David, will help ensure they get adequate support to operate within established standards and safety protocols.

“A properly regulated small-scale mining industry will benefit the community in terms of job creation and livelihood, and the country in terms of mining assets and taxes. More importantly, it will address the violation of environmental laws and mining regulations, and minimize environmental risks and promote mine safety,” David said.

He added that the Department’s newly-created Geospatial Database Office under his helm employs satellite imagery and Geographic Information System or GIS which can potentially monitor mining operations in the country and identify those which are illegally operating.

The DENR is looking to amend Republic Act 7076, also known as the People’s Small-Scale Mining Act of 1991, to provide social assistance, labor protection, and government-backed assistance programs for the benefit of small-scale miners. The DENR is also a staunch advocate of support for small miners, through a “big brother, small brother approach”—encouraging larger companies to help capacitate them to contribute to social and environmental protection efforts, protect small miners, and enhance the resilience of the mining community.

On top of capacity-building for small-scale mining ventures, the DENR is committed to modernizing standards for the mining industry—harnessing capabilities of cutting-edge technologies such as remote sensing and artificial intelligence to enhance industry regulation and law enforcement.

In a meeting with DENR officials last year, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. issued directives to legalize small-scale mining operations. Many of these operations currently operate outside the legal framework, leaving miners without proper protection./DENR ###       

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Published: 09 October 2023

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Region 6 headed by Regional Executive Director Livino B. Duran and the current chair of the Regional Ecotourism Committee (REC) conducts its meeting at the Villa Valderrama Mountain Resort (VVMR) at Valderrama, Antique on September 22, 2023.

The Forestland Use Agreement for Tourism (FLAgT) given to the VVMR is a tenurial instrument which supports its legal operations and the first FLAgT signed by DENR 6 Regional Executive Director (RED) Livino B. Duran since he took oath in June 2021.

The FLAgT presents a transformative approach to land management, emphasizing the sustainable use of forest resources while safeguarding their long-term viability. The program strives to combine economic development, recreation, and conservation in a way that allows tourists to enjoy the area's natural beauty while also supporting the local economy. FLAgT has a term of twenty-five (25) years and is renewable for the same time duration.

Furthermore, it was also decided during the REC meeting, that VVMR be included among the list of the possible area to be added in the Western Visayas Ecotourism Loop which includes the six provinces, namely; Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo, and Negros Occidental.

 “As a former reforestation project by the Department, the Villa Valderrama Mountain Resort serves as an example for sustainable land-use while promoting conservation efforts,” RED Duran said.

“Our region is blessed to have a huge number of ecotourism areas that can contribute to the economic, and tourism growth as well as in promoting responsible use of natural resources. This is one of the ways to introduce to the public the natural world and clean surroundings,” RED Duran added.

In the previous meeting, the committee agreed to include Bucari Pine Forest and Campsite in Leon, Iloilo, and the Sibalom Natural Park in Sibalom, Antique to the WV Ecotourism Loop. This time the Gawahon Ecopark in Northern Negros Natural Park in the province of Negros Occidental has been approved to be part of Ecotourism Loop along with the Taklong Island National Marine Reserve in the province of Guimaras, Bulabog Putian National Park in the province of Iloilo, Bakhawan Ecopark in the province of Aklan, and Mararison Island in the province of Antique, and many others.

Meanwhile, the Capiz Ecology Park and Cultural Village is under validation by the REC.

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Published: 05 October 2023

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Region 6 aims to involve Local Government Units (LGUs) and other government agencies as well as the concerned stakeholders in every undertaking of the Department and to have a wider scope of partners for environmental protection the DENR 6 Licenses, Patents, and Deeds Division (LPDD) through its Water Resource Utilization Section (WRUS) invited Information Officers (IOs) from the Provincial and Community ENR Offices across the region to the blended (face-to-face and virtual) Information, Education and Communication (IEC) Campaign on the “Salient Features of the Water Code of the Philippines” PD 1067 held at DENR 6 Activity Center last August 24, 2023.  

“In today’s generation the Department and the people need to work hand-in-hand to promote water security and by doing so, we need to evaluate and disseminate our knowledge to them. Water is very important in our lives –for water security (drinking and domestic use), energy (hydropower), food security (irrigation), and many more, that’s why the DENR Region 6 is asking for your cooperation to give the public ideas in preserving, protecting and conserving our precious water,” said DENR 6 RED Livino B. Duran.

The activity was also participated by representatives from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Agriculture (DA), Provincial Government of Iloilo- Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO), and technical staff from the DENR line bureaus –Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) and Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB).

Water Code of the Philippines and its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) was presented by LPDD Chief, Atty. Elizur G. Militar, where he expounded the provisions in the Water Code, its objectives, principles, and water rights and permits.

Other topics during the program were the different Water Permit Application Requirements per NWRB Resolution No. 09-0916 dated September 21, 2016, presented by Engr. Segundino D. Celeste, Jr., other requirements for areas within Protected Areas presented by For. Kimberly P. Habana, and areas within Forestlands presented by For. Mercedita G. Lastica.

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Published: 03 October 2023