Hedcor, USAID empower Mt. Apo rangers thru sustainable roadmap

STA. CRUZ, Davao del Sur, Apr. 01 – Hedcor and USAID jointly organized an environmental law enforcement workshop aimed at improving forest conditions in Mt. Apo.

Hedcor’s vice president for Mindanao operations Rolando Pacquiao said, “This sustainable roadmap workshop is one of our direct efforts in sustainability initiatives crafted for our partner communities.”

Some 100 participants from Hedcor, B+Wiser, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Local Government of Barangay Sibulan, and the Mount Apo Natural Park (MANP) forest rangers developed a roadmap for improving forest conditions through enhanced environmental law enforcement.

Prior to the creation of the roadmap, the participants underwent a workshop held at Hedcor’s host communities in Sitio Pogpog, Sitio Tudaya and Barangay Sibulan proper in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur.

The forest area in and around Sibulan is within the MANP and is an important source of water supply for both domestic use and energy generation.

Hedcor, with four generating hydropower plants in the area, started its reforestation efforts in 2008. Since then, the 1,000-hectare land area within the Mt Apo Natural Park has already been covered.

Hedcor is currently integrating environmental law enforcement to have a more positive impact on the wider landscape, which includes areas with high conservation values, such as those considered as habitats of the critically endangered Philippine Eagle.

Meanwhile, B+WISER is providing technical assistance in designing Forest Protection and Monitoring System to rehabilitate the forests. The technical assistance provided for this initiative is part of USAID’s restoration efforts which covers 78,000 hectares in the country.

Hedcor’s direct result for its green practices, it is ISO-certified for Environment Management Systems and a recipient of Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ Seal of Excellence.  

Hedcor is operating run-of-river hydropower plants with a total installed capacity of 170MW for its 21 generating facilities across the country. For 37 years, Hedcor is continuously growing and developing more run-of-river plants to provide Cleanergy, its brand of clean and renewable energy. (PR/Hedcor)