Movers of the ‘Million Trees’ challenge on Tuesday lauded San Miguel Corp. (SMC) President and COO Ramon S. Ang for his various initiatives to boost environmental protection and rehabilitation.
“The projects that SMC through the leadership of Mr. Ramon S. Ang are undertaking to address environmental problems are both commendatory and worth emulating,” Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) Chairman and OIC Administrator Reynaldo V. Velasco said in a statement.
Velasco issued the statement in reaction to a report that SMC intends to plant close to 200,000 mangroves along the Bulacan coastlines as part of its flood mitigation plan.
Velasco is the prime mover of MWSS’ Annual Million Tree Challenge (AMTC) which subsequently led to the formation of the Million Trees Foundation, Inc. (MTFI), whose goal is to institutionalize the massive reforestation activities started by MWSS AMTC.
SMC’s comprehensive plan also includes the cleaning, dredging, and widening of major tributaries in the Marilao-Meycauayan-Obando river system of Bulacan. Bulacan is the site of the New Manila International Airport under SMC’s Aero City franchise that is set to break ground in the second quarter of the year.
SMC’s CSR projects on environmental protection and rehabilitation range from coastal clean-up, river rehabilitation, tree-planting and reforestation.
It is undertaking the clean-up of the Tullahan-Tinajeros river system Sectors 1-3 that stretches from Manila Bay in Navotas to the Tinajeros Bridge in Malabon.
The Department of Public Works and Highways has likewise approved the extension of dredging the river-system to include Sectors 4 and 5 that will run from Tinajeros Bridge to Potrero in Malabon and Valenzuela.
Aside from cleaning the river system of solid waste, work will include increasing the depth and widening portions of the river. Last year, no heavy flooding was reported in the flood-prone areas in Malabon and Navotas because of the dredging project of SMC resulted in more floodwaters flowing into the river.
Ang said SMC is fully committed to its advocacy of cleaning up major rivers and help with flood mitigation.
“We are making all the necessary preparations now to move into the next phase of our river cleanup and flood management initiative. We’re investing in new equipment, and hiring more people.”
SMC also intends to dredge the Pasig River as part of its proposed Pasig River Expressway project.
SMC subsidiary Luzon Clean Water Development Corp. is an active partner agency of the MWSS in the latter’s AMTC Project. The AMTC is an initiative of the MWSS Corporate Office under Velasco’s leadership.
It is a 5-year watershed rehabilitation project to rehabilitate seven critical watersheds essential to water supply in Metro Manila and the neighboring provinces of Rizal, Cavite, and Bulacan through the planting of one million trees annually.
Luzon Clean Water has planted and reforested portions of the Ipo Dam watershed, one of the watersheds identified by MWSS that needed immediate rehabilitation and one of the beneficiaries of the AMTC.
Concerted efforts among government, private sector, and civic organizations have resulted in the increase of forest cover at the Ipo watershed by 87 percent in 2019. This was disclosed during the AMTC partners’ meeting and pledging session held last month at the MWSS.
In the same meeting, the Million Tree Foundation, Inc. was also introduced to the AMTC partner stakeholders.
The foundation is headed by publisher, book author and communications specialist Melandrew Velasco. It aims to preserve and restore the ecosystem functions of watersheds nationwide aside from the watershed beneficiaries of AMTC.
The River Basin Control Office of DENR has identified 142 critical watersheds in the Philippines. The rehabilitation of the watersheds will be patterned after the La Mesa dam rehabilitation project.