THE PHILIPPINE Eagle Foundation (PEF) said almost a thousand trees were already adopted by various individuals and corporations as part of the reforestation initiative to replenish habitat for the apex raptors.
The conservation efforts “Planting for the Future” Campaign by PEF, launched last March, aims to support the Philippine Eagle conservation efforts by planting three million trees in specific hotspot areas.
During the Kapihan forum on Aug. 5, Harold Kim Manla, PEF Forest Restoration marketing officer, said an average of 7,000 hectares of forest cover are needed for the Philippine Eagle to create a nest and produce offspring.
“One of the struggles really is the lack of forest covers to accommodate the 392 pairs of remaining eagles, based on the population model. That’s why we need to reforest, create more habitats for these species to survive,” Manla said.
An individual could adopt a tree for P250, utilized for its maintenance and other resources.
“One of the largest hotspots of the PH eagles’ population is here in Mindanao because we still have thicker forest here,” he said.
The three million trees aim to rehabilitate 1,200 hectares of degraded land close to nine Philippine eagle nesting sites through both restoration and agroforestry initiatives, located across four provinces of Mindanao: Bukidnon, Cotabato, Davao de Oro, and Davao del Sur.
The program also benefits indigenous people communities, providing various jobs to conduct nursery, planting, maintenance, monitoring operations, and additional livelihood opportunities from harvesting fruit-bearing trees.
Manla highlighted that one of its unique processes for monitoring the trees is that every nursery seedling is assigned a QR code to identify and scan the trees regularly.
Interested donors and adopters may also visit https://threemilliontrees.com/ for more information.
File Photo: Bing Gonzales
