Manila, Philippines – At least 600 seedlings of golden shower, molave, mabolo, neem and other Philippine hardwood trees were planted by volunteers from Chevron Philippines Inc. (CPI), marketer of the Caltex fuel and lubricants, at the 73-hectare Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) landfill in San Mateo, Rizal.
Chevron volunteers brought the total planted area in the MMDA landfill to 52% of the target 250,000 newly-planted seedlings, according to MMDA. The activity forms part of the MMDA and DENR’s goal of adding 10,000 seedlings to complete its target of 100,000 this year, in support of the government’s on-going National Greening Program.
Last year, Chevron volunteers went to the same landfill and planted about 270 seedlings, 90% of which have since grown taller and stronger despite Typhoon Glenda last July.
“We hope that more companies like Chevron will continue to set an example in conducting sustained tree-planting activities. This initiative is vital for the much needed rehabilitation of the landfill, which we envision to be one of the country’s finest tourist eco-parks known for its diverse flora and fauna. It also fits well in our disaster risk reduction and management plan for the whole metro,” said Poteet Morales, MMDA public relations officer.
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