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4. Implementation of forest restoration and rehabilitation initiatives
Deforestation converts forest to another land use or over the long term reduces tree canopy cover below the minimum 10 percent threshold. To restore deforested areas, degraded forests or previously non-forested areas, reforestation and
afforestation strategies may be used. Most forest restoration processes in the tropics involve reforestation, as opposed to afforestation Sajise 2003.
In the Philippines, strategies for forest restoration have evolved over time – with a mixture of objectives, institutional arrangements and technical approaches. This will be discussed briefly below.
4.1 History of initiatives, strategies and techniques
4.1.1 The history and emergence of various forest restoration strategies Government initiatives: Forest restoration in the Philippines – reforestation, rehabilitation, forest plantations, and later
with agroforestry and more organized ANR – started with academic efforts back in 1910 at the Forestry School now the University of the Philippines at Los Baños College of Forestry and Natural Resources in Los Baños Pulhin et al. 2006.
To bolster the rehabilitation efforts, the Reforestation Administration was created in 1972 to focus on the reforestation of more areas that were degraded, denuded and rapidly undergoing various stages of degradation and becoming grasslands.
By 1974, the government had reforested about 160 000 ha with the main objective of regreening, combined with testing the introduction of various indigenous and exotic species Pulhin et al. 2006. It was not clear whether these reforested
areas and plantations would eventually be the source of raw materials for the wood industry. Later the large reforestation projects became part of watershed reserve and research areas. Some have become germplasm sites for many indigenous
and exotic species.
After the martial law years and the entry of the Aquino administration, the government ushered in a strong environmental campaign that focused on curbing illegal logging, pro-people allocation of the remaining natural assets and renewed
reforestation efforts. The results are shown in Table 4. Reforestation reached more than 0.5 million ha during the 1986- 1992 period. Most of this planting – 425 800 ha – however, was the result of massive infusion of funds through loans
from the Asian Development Bank and Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund for contract reforestation by families, rural communities, LGUs and NGOs under the Forestry Sector Program Acosta 2002.
These reforestation efforts were strongly DENR-driven and were received with mixed response of ownership by the contracted entities. These efforts were in response to external clamour to balance both production and protection. Thus,
most plantations were established to rehabilitate watersheds. Tenure and long-term rights to what the families and the entities planted were not seriously considered – they appeared to be an ‘after thought’. Thus, most of these areas were
established after planting and initial maintenance and eventually turned over to the government for protection and management. Some communities eventually obtained tenure rights over what they had planted. These areas cannot serve
as an important supply source of industrial wood Acosta 2002; Pulhin et al. 2006.
Data from 2003 to 2007 revealed that at least 500 000 ha were ‘restored forests’ as a result of past reforestation, afforestation, and regeneration of degraded natural forests ERDB 2010. Sixty-two percent of this, however, was
accomplished by the government and the rest by the private sector.
Table 4. Forest planting by the government and private sector summarized by Acosta in 2002 from FMB forestry statistics 1997-2001
Period
Before 1980 1980-1985
1986-1992 1993-1998
1999-2001
Industrial wood planting
6 634 20 681
28 803 18 901
3 421
TLA reforestation compliance
67 689 111 300
132 956 95 138
8 893
Includes contract reforestation from
1989 onwards
184 029 179 389
425 802 147 609
69 799
Planting for environmental
purposes
15 358 18 653
6 130 27 048
4 561
Government Private sector
135 The massive reforestation efforts in the 1990s and early 2000s yielded valuable lessons and approaches. In terms of species
for timber with rotations ranging from seven to 18 years and fuelwood, the following indigenous and exotic species were deemed appropriate even under minimal maintenance and inhospitable conditions Chokkalingam et al. 2006: Mahogany
Swietenia macrophylla, Gmelina Gmelina arborea, Acacia mangium, Narra Pterocarpus indicus, Acacia auriculiformis, Eucalyptus deglupta, Teak Tectona grandis, Ipil-ipil Leucaena leucocephala, Falcata Paraserianthes falcataria, Molave
Vitex parvifl ora and Agoho Casuarina equisitefolia.
The planting materials for the above species were easily grown, available and accessible.
Private sector-driven initiatives: To a certain extent, most of the government requirements for the TLA and IFMA holders were all intended to ensure sustainable harvest for the next cycles augmented by their own reforestation,
enrichment planting and forest plantations. Enrichment planting was undertaken in inadequately-stocked residual areas with Falcata and Gmelina Natonton and Abraham 1984. Several fast-growing hardwoods appeared to be highly suitable
as sources of timber from forest plantations. These were Falcata, Gmelina, Leucaena, Acacia mangium and Eucalypts. Several dipterocarp species responded positively when planted as seedlings or wildlings in three-to-12-year-old fertile and
partly-shaded plantations of fast-growing hardwoods Reyes 1984. As a result of timber stand improvements, enrichment planting and planting of open areas, Nasipit Lumber Company in
Agusan Del Norte, Western Mindanao Lumber Company in Basilan and Insular Lumber Company in Basilan were able to harvest second cuts of dipterocarps and other natural timber species after 15 to 30 years Reyes 1984.
Partnership arrangements with communities in forest lands: Over time, partnership and collaborative arrangements emerged for the restoration and rehabilitation of degraded and denuded areas. This was the main rationale for the Forest
Occupancy Management of Bureau of Forest Development of the Ministry of Natural Resources now DENR in 1971. This simple approach allows occupants to do the reforestation. This was followed by the Family Approach to Reforestation in
1974 and communal tree farms in 1979. All these initial works with the communities were simply engaging communities or family members to plant forest trees and some agricultural crops for subsistence. They were not issued long-term tenures.
A more serious look at communities and occupants took place with the birth of Integrated Social Forestry in 1982. This was designed to alleviate worsening poverty in the uplands, promote social justice and protect the environment through proper
stewardship. A 25-year certificate of stewardship tenure system was awarded to legitimate claimants DENR 1996. A more vigorous programme that included community organizations was the precursor of the CBFM programme of the DENR. This
was the Community Forestry Program in 1989 which included the award of 1 000 ha to organized communities for their protection and management. The provisions of the agreement included the right of the communities to utilize productive
residual forests as an immediate source of income for forest protection and livelihoods Guiang 2008. This became the foundation of the CBFM strategy and its national adoption in 1994 under EO 263. The limited harvesting rights of peoples’
organizations to remaining natural residual forests and mature plantation forests within their areas were part of the overall strategy to enhance forest restoration, protection of the remaining natural forests and addressing upland poverty.
Partnerships with LGUs: Over the last 15 years, forest restoration efforts have been increasingly carried out in partnerships with cities, municipalities and the provinces. The joint forest land-use planning FLUP exercises have led to joint protection,
development, management and oversight of various resource management units in a given locality. Most local leaders expressed their willingness to collaborate with the DENR and national government agencies to rehabilitate and restore
local watersheds, address weak tenure rights, assist poor upland communities and protect the remaining natural forests EcoGov Project 2011. Most of these efforts were initially supported by USAID, World Bank and GIZ projects. Gradually,
however, FLUP and the joint implementation approaches started to flourish. This approach has significantly contributed to protecting the remaining forest cover in a given locality and increased support for the rehabilitation and restoration of
community-managed forest lands and local watersheds. It has also opened up opportunities to strengthen tenure systems and link communities with the private sector for co-investments in forest lands.
Outsourcing arrangements for forest rehabilitation and technical support with NGOs: This approach originally emerged from the initial experience of the Manila Waterworks and Sewerage System MWSS contracting the Manila
Seedling Bank Foundation for the rehabilitation and management of the La Mesa Dam that serves as the source of domestic water for Metro Manila. This approach was pilot tested by the USAID-funded Rainfed Resources Development
Project with several NGOs. It is effective provided the NGO has a long-term interest in the rehabilitation, protection and management of the reforested areas.
The Manila Seedling Bank was paid for its rehabilitation, maintenance and protection efforts. The foundation was finally allowed to engage in thinning and harvesting of fuelwood and fodder from hedgerows and firebreaks to reduce the
subsidy of the MWSS for its oversight. The results showed that providing long-term interest for NGOs in protecting and managing a reserve or delineated forest land with initial incentives reduced the cost of restoration. Unfortunately, the
NGOs were not given long-term rights and incentives for protecting and managing their areas in collaboration and in partnership with communities and occupants in the area. Planted areas were turned over to the government instead of
exploring opportunities for co-management and protection of such areas.
One area where the NGOs proved to be helpful was in assisting community organizations in improving their technical, organizational and financial capacities to protect and manage their tenured areas. This has been useful and effective
in several donor-funded projects in the Philippines. The communities learned effective techniques for rehabilitation,
