The House of Representatives approved on third and final reading two bills for the sustainable environmental preservation and protection and reforestation that will greatly help in the government’s efforts to improve the current state of the country’s environment.
House Bill (HB) 9587 sought to require families to plant two trees for every child born to them while HB 9588 sought to require all graduating senior high school and college students to plant two trees as a civic duty of environment protection and preservation.
Baguio Rep. Mark Go, principal author of the two bills, said the proposed measures will have a great impact on the reforestation efforts of the government to help bring back the greenery of the country’s forests and denuded mountains.
Based on the data obtained from the Philippine Statistics Authority, an average of 4,177 babies are born daily or about 174 babies per hour or approximately three babies born per minute.
In 2020, a total of 1,528,684 live births were registered which is equivalent to a crude birth rate (CBR) of 14.1 births per thousand population.
Go said by requiring every parent to plant two trees for every child born to them will result in more than 3,000,000 trees planted annually.
In the case of the graduates for academic year 2021-2022, Go said there were 601,814 college graduates and 1,613,320 senior high school graduates where their collected effort is projected to add approximately 4.4 million trees annually to the country’s forest cover.
That will leave lasting impact on the ecosystem and will contribute significantly to reforestation, climate change mitigation, and sustainable development.
He said planting trees will also instill in the graduates a sense of environmental responsibility, nurturing a generation that values and understands the importance of their role in preserving the environment.
Go said he will continue to take part in issues both of local and national significance with the Filipino people’s best interest in mind and he will continue to participate in meaningful and productive discussions with the people.
“We continue to find common ground and build consensus in order to find solutions to our city and nation’s long standing problems. Let us carry the flame of passion for genuine public service forward into 2024,” Go said. – PIO release
