Task force formed to protect Capiz shells

These capiz shells provide a living to the villagers living near the sea....


Task force formed to protect Capiz shells
By: Robert Leonoras
BusinessWorld
1/24/2006 8:56:14 AM

San Enrique, Negros Occidental -- The municipal government has formed a task force to protect marine mollusks that are the source of Capiz shells, locally known as lampirong.

San Enrique Mayor Jilson D. Tubillara ordered the creation of the task force after a huge reserve of these mollusks was found in the shallow waters of this town. The mollusks were reported to have almost covered the seabed.

"This is a gift from Mother Nature. I hope that the people of San Enrique will help our fellow policemen in protecting these shells," Mr. Tubillara said.

The mollusk (scientific name: Placuna placenta) is also known as windowpane oyster because its outer shell was used to make windows in colonial times.

The shell is translucent and allows daylight to filter through. The shell came to be known as Capiz shell because these were originally harvested near the town of Capiz on Panay island.

Task Force Lampirong will educate the people on the importance of the shells, regulate the gathering and distribution of the shells and ensure that no shells are gathered within a 25-hectare protected area. The task force is headed by the town’s police chief, Senior Inspector Raymund Maningo.

Municipal agriculturist Marilou Peñafiel said about 100 tons of shells have already been fished out of the sea. "In just five days, it already brought an income of P71,000 for the municipality."

Mr. Tubillara said the shells are sold for P12 per kilogram. Of this amount, P1 goes to the municipal government and another P1 goes to the barangay and P10 to the seller. The meat is also sold. This may be served as buttered with garlic bits or adobo-style.

The shells are used as raw materials for handicraft, including lamp shades, flower vases, chandeliers, chessboards, glass covers and coasters, wind chimes, wall panels and ash trays. Products made from Capiz shell are among the export winners from the Visayas.

Mr. Tubillara said divers from the neighboring cities and towns like Hinigaran, Pontevedra and Valladolid have arrived in this town to gather the shells.

"You enjoy gathering them because they shine and millions of these shells cover the seabed," he said. But he warned the people not to go into the 25-hectare protected area.

Just recently, Mr. Tubillara said the task force apprehended two pump boats with 12 fishermen who ventured into the protected area. They were released after they promised to stay out of the reserve.

Bacolod preserves Tindalo tree planted by Quezon

An old landmark in Bacolod, which was never been recognized...


Bacolod preserves Tindalo tree planted by Quezon
By: Robert Leonoras
BusinessWorld
1/30/2006 9:53:43 AM

Bacolod City -- Often ignored, the 67-year-old Tindalo tree at the Bacolod public plaza stands as a silent witness to this city’s history.

The tree was planted by President Manuel L. Quezon on Oct. 19, 1938 to mark the inauguration of Bacolod as a chartered city. Because of its historical value, the tree is being preserved at the plaza.

Tindalo, the common name for Afzelia romboidea, is noted for its valuable timber. Extensive logging has dwindled its number such that it is now considered among the country’s native rare species.

The city government allocates an annual budget for the maintenance of the Tindalo and other trees at the plaza through the general services office (GSO).

GSO officer-in-charge Jose Solilapsi said he hoped to discuss soon with Mayor Evelio R. Leonardia this year’s budget for the maintenance and preservation of the trees and other facilities of the plaza.

"We should not limit our projects to maintaining the cleanliness of the city park but the preservation of its rare trees as well," Mr. Solilapsi said.

Dan Villalobos, supervisor for the maintenance of the plaza, successfully transplanted a sapling from the mother tree eight to 10 years ago.

The second Tindalo tree is heavy with fruits, each about 12 centimeters long and six centimeters wide with a thick, black and woody pod and two to three large seeds.

Mr. Villalobos said he transplated a sapling to prove that the Tindalo can grow well at the plaza. An official of the Negros Forest Ecological Foundation, Inc. earlier urged the city government to remove the tree and plant this in the forest because it was prone to stress at the plaza, which is frequently visited by people.

The soil there is also not as fertile as that in the forest. The official, who asked not to be named, said there’s room for natural regeneration in the forest.

He added that the Tindalo should be relocated to a lowland near the coast, which is its natural habitat.

Mr. Villalobos, who has been maintaining the tree for the past 23 years, brushed this aside. He said the tree is well taken cared of. At times, he said it may appear to be dying because it sheds off leaves.

He said pruning, a common tree maintenance procedure and is done regularly. Pruning is done to remove dead branches, crowded or rubbing limbs and to eliminate hazards.

Mt. Kanlaon at losing end in budget scramble

And another one...Mt Kanlaon is one of the active volcanoes in the Philippines. Many local and foreign tourists captured their heart when they saw the beauty of this natural wonder


Mt. Kanlaon at losing end in budget scramble
By: Roberto Leonoras
BusinessWorld
6/23/2006 9:18:14 AM

Bacolod City -- Not a single centavo has been allocated for forest protection and law enforcement at the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park in the proposed 2006 budget of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), a park official said.



Photo from WOW Philippines Web site.

"Just when we need it the most, there isn’t a single centavo to work on," said Julie Rex Molavin, park superintendent of the Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park. The volcano has been acting up and has spewed grayish steam with ash eight times in the last two weeks.

Negros Occidental Rep. Carlos Cojuangco had proposed a P3.8-million budget for the park, but this was ignored by the members of the bicameral committee, Mr. Molavin said.

The park, however, expects assistance from the DENR Western Visayas regional office, which promised to provide P25,000 for park operations for the rest of the year despite the lack of a budget in the national office. Pledges of financial assistance were also made by the Negros Occidental provincial government and other local government units in the vicinity of the park.

But Mr. Molavin said this is not enough. Of the P25,000, he said only P18,000 will be left for the park since P7,000 will go to the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office-Negros Occidental to cover administrative expenses. The amount is less than half of the P59,000 that they received from the DENR regional office last year, he added.

"The P18,000 is not enough for our maintenance and operating expenses. This amount will easily be eaten up by the Protected Area Management Board meetings. Only a few thousands of pesos will be left to cover management concerns of the park," he said.

There would be no amount left for forest protection, information and education system as well as socioeconomic programs of the agency, he added.

Hinahon and Suplada: An eagle owl love story

I also like this article, I wrote. I am so delightful that I was able to search it on the net.


Hinahon and Suplada: An eagle owl love story
By: Robert Leonoras
BusinessWorld
7/5/2006 10:03:05 AM

Bacolod City -- Veterinarians here played matchmaker to Philippine eagle owls, Hinahon and Suplada, in hopes the the two would hit it off and make babies and give a much-needed lift to a captive-breeding program to boost the number of the endangered eagle owls in the wild.



The Philippine eagle owl, Bubo philippensis, is locally known as kuwago or bukao and is among the largest species of owls in the world. Massive deforestation and hunting caused a rapid decline in its population, putting it in the endangered list of animals.

In fact, the Negros Forest and Ecological Foundation, Inc. plans to develop a genetic bank to increase the Philippine eagle owl population.

Wildlife veterinarian Cristina Georgii, who was sent by the German government to the foundation’s Biodiversity Conservation Center to lend management and technical expertise to the project, said they will continue to breed Philippine eagle owls in captivity to develop the genetic bank.

"Our end goal is to release the birds into the wild. But currently, we are focusing our efforts on breeding the eagle owl in captivity and increase their population," she said.

The Negros foundation pioneered a captive breeding program for the Philippine eagle owl, Bubo philippensis, and other owl species endemic to the Philippines. The eagle owl is locally known as kuwago or bukao and is among the largest species of owls in the world. But massive deforestation and hunting caused a rapid decline in its population. The first eagle owl hatched in captivity, Bubo, is the offspring of Hinahon and Suplada. He was hatched in November 2005, said curator Leo Jonathan Suarez.

The foundation secured a loan that allowed it to acquire three pairs of eagle owls from the Avilon Montalban Zoological Park in Montalban, Rizal.

The German Development Service, which also supports the program, has sent Ms. Georgii to help manage the Biodiversity Conservation Center.

Silk Capital

Hello,

I am sharing to you my previous article published on BusinessWorld and Sun.Star Bacolod. This is a very old story, and I just want to compile some of the articles I wrote before.

Thanks


By Robert Leonoras, Correspondent
August 27-28, 2004 | BusinessWorld

TF! Editorial Comment: Agricultural production is still a primary activity in much of the countryside. Initiatives which build on the agricultural base with proper linkages can leverage resources for building sustainable local economies. In the article below, an entrepreneur in Negros is using silk production to create livelihoods and support silk-based handicraft and garment production.

Negros island is pitching to become the country's silk capital, and it has empirical data to back up its claim.

Not everybody knows that sericulture farms on Negros island produce between 85% and 90% of the raw materials for silk in the country.

Silkworms: Negros' claim to fame
These farms are found in Bago City and Sagay City in Negros Occidental, and Canlaon City in Negros Oriental.

"We are the biggest producers of silk in the country, wherein 85% to 90% are being distributed in the other cities and provinces. We supply 90% of silk to Aklan weavers. They are our major buyer," said Thelma Watanabe, president of Mayu Silk Industry.

She and husband Shigimi are working to make Negros the silk capital.
Mr. Watanabe is a director of the Organization for Industrial, Spiritual & Cultural Advancement (OISCA), which operates a 26-hectare silk farm in Bago City.

OISCA is a non-profit and non-governmental organization (NGO) founded by the late Dr. Yonosuke Nakano in Japan on Oct. 6, 1961.

When the silk farm started, silkworms were imported from Japan. Today, Mrs. Watanabe said they produce their own silkworms, the result of crossbreeding the Japanese and Chinese silkworms.

"The sericulture industry is now the biggest livelihood in Negros Occidental," she said.

OISCA-Bago has a reeling center, silk center, rearing house, and breeding center.

"Reeling is the process of taking the thread from the cocoon to make it into yarn while rearing is the process of growing the silkworm until it transforms into a cocoon," Mrs. Watanabe explained.

The training center offers major services such as an agricultural training course, which is a live-in training for youth interested in farming. The trainees not only learn farming and other related technologies but also healthful living.

The center also maintains an area for rice cultivation, vegetable production, a piggery, a seedling nursery, mulberry plantations, silkworm nursery, rearing houses, and a silk reeling plant. OISCA-Bago also provides scholarship, training program for women, reforestation program, tie-up programs and day care program.

Salutation to our war Veteran Heroes

The Philippines and the United States have just earlier celebrated the Veterans Day. This is not just an ordinary celebration for Filipino and American soldiers. I thanked the support of the two nations for continue to remember the heroes during the World War II.

Our Filipino soldiers deserve total respect. I admired their nationalism and patriotism for risking their lives for the sake that our beloved Land will be freed against the Japanese Emperial circle. This can't be done successfully without the help of the American soldiers. Of course, it was written in the Philippine History that the Americans have strong interest in our country.

However, our country preferred to stand by its own, while the American government offered the freedom to the Filipino people.

My great great grandfather was known to be the soldier who had joined the Filipino soldiers whose mission is to dismantle the Japanese elite forces during the war. I am happy to say that my grandfather was used to be a hero, too. My respect and salutation to the war veterans who remains alive, and continue to reminisce the old days of war.

Congratulations to our veteran heroes!

Remembering Our Dead

EARLY in the morning I received an SMS message from my mother that she and the rest of my family members are proceeding to Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, to visit the tomb of my late grandfather. I only remember that my first and last visit to my grandfather's tomb was in 2005 (if I'm not mistaken). My mother constantly offers prayer and burned candle to his tomb.

By the way, Cadiz is one of the cities situated in the northern portion of Negros Occidental. I'd never seen my lolo (grandfather) alive because he died when I'm not born in this world. I don't even seen his photograph and even my lola (grandmother) don't have a photograph of her late husband. How funny isn't it? This does not mean that I hate my lolo or my lola. I remember that my grandma always kissed me when I was a toddler. Her warmth love and affection I felt from her motivates me, how loving mother she is to her children and her grandchildren.

At first, I really hate going to the cemeteries, however, I opted to go as it requires to my job as journalist-photographer during my Sun.Star Bacolod days. Since I covered police beat, part of my assignment was to monitor the event if it is celebrated peacefully or not. Luckily, no major incidents usually transpired because the Bacolodnons and the Negrenses are very cooperative to the local police officers.

I left no choice to quit my job, as I felt the urge to shift to another career -- main reason is the low salary scheme I received. I did not regret leaving my job. Now, I work here in Metro Manila in a call center company, being away from my family is pretty sad, but I learned to move on and depend on myself.

We, Filipinos are very sentimental in remembering our dead loved ones. I read on a national daily newspaper that the Catholic Bishop Conference of the Philippines issued a statement that the All Saints and All Souls Day -- are not a time for fiesta. I agree to the statement of the CBCP reminding our Filipino people about the true essence of this holy event. Our demise loved ones deserve respect and care, too. This is not the time to drink (liquor substance), sing-along, and gamble inside the cemeteries. We celebrate this event because the Church wants us to offer prayers to our departed brothers and sisters. The Church wants us to be responsible enough in our role human being.

******

Wayback in Bacolod, when I used of covering this event for five years, me and my fellas went together inside the cemeteries and joined thousands of revelers bringing flowers and other paraphernalia. Not just we mingled with other people, but we learned the true meaning of this celebration.

So even if it is not the All Saints and All Souls Day, let's continue to offer prayers to them. Our prayer is one of the most effective tools in making their souls at peace!

Happy Halloween!