MANILA (UCAN): Catholic groups in the Philippines have renewed their resolve to protect the Sierra Madre mountain range, as they observed September 26 as the annual day to build awareness of the need to protect the mountain.
Environmental groups have been opposing illegal logging, mining, conversion of forests into agricultural land, and the construction of the controversial Kaliwa dam in the mountain range.
The dam, a $1.9 billion project, “would adversely affect over 1,500 households including indigenous peoples who have ancestral lands in the Sierra Madre mountains,” said Kristine Villaluz, executive secretary of the Catholic Movement for a Greener Environment.
She stressed the need to restore the Philippines’ longest mountain range, which saved several provinces, including the capital Manila, from floods and landslides caused by Super Typhoon Noru [Karding].
Villaluz said that her organisation opposes the construction of the controversial dam that stretches across the provinces of Rizal and Quezon province. It was dubbed a pet project of former president, Rodrigo Duterte, who warned judges not to meddle with it claiming it would “save the nation.”
In February 2020, Catholic bishops opposed the dam alleging it catered to “only big businesses and Chinese investors.”
The Sierra Madre, which stretches over 540 kilometres from Cagayan province to Quezon province, plays an important role as a natural shield against typhoons coming from the Pacific Ocean, according to environmentalists
The Laudato Si’ environmental group has also called for the Sierra Madre to be protected underlining how it serves as the “backbone of Luzon” during natural calamities. Its spokesperson, Jovert Gomez, said: “We have the Sierra Madre to thank for. It acts like a spine along the eastern coast of Luzon.”
Father Nicanor Diesta of Diocese of Legazpi in the Bicol region of southern Luzon, said private corporations should include the Sierra Madre mountains in their corporate social responsibility [CSR] programme.
“Here in our diocese, we have included the seas as part of CSR for companies in the region. They make it a point to clean our waters or the beach at least twice a year. Perhaps we should do the same for the Sierra Madre. We need clean up drives, plant trees, and oppose any program that threatens it,” Father Diesta said.
As we celebrate the 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines. The Chaplaincy to Filipino Migrants organises an on-line talk every Tuesday at 9.00pm. You can join us at:
https://www.Facebook.com/CFM-Gifted-to-give-101039001847033
Late former president, Benigno Aquino III, declared September 26 as Sierra Madre Day highlighting the need to save the mountains, especially its trees.
“President Aquino was instrumental in issuing a presidential decree asking citizens to contribute to preserving the country’s longest mountain range,” Villaluz said.
According to meteorologist, Ariel Rojas, the mountain range causes the winds to weaken thus preventing further damage in the provinces where it made landfall.
“Because there is friction with the surface, the circulation of wind is disrupted. Rains were also reduced and water was absorbed into the soil because of the trees. Thus, the lesser trees we have in the mountain, the lesser shield the Sierra Madre could give us [living in Manila],” he explained.
