BY IME SORNITO
ILOILO – To sustain its reforestation campaign, the Iloilo provincial government is now asking Ilonggos to bring any type of seeds to designated nurseries in exchange for free fruit-bearing or native tree seedlings.
This initiative is under the newly launched Project L.I.S.O. (Locally Intensified Seeds/Seedlings Collection One), a community-based campaign led by the Provincial Government Environment and Natural Resources Office (PGENRO) to boost the “Tanum Iloilo” movement, which aims to plant 1.5 million trees annually.
“The public is welcome to request seedlings, but in return, they must bring any type of seeds — whether from fruit-bearing or native trees — to help replenish our supply,” said PGENRO senior environmental management specialist Mitzi Peñaflorida. “This exchange promotes sustainability and community ownership.”
Available seedlings include native trees such as bayog, kubi/malugai, kamagong, tapiyay, mato, narra (smooth and prickly), kalumpit, and toog; while fruit-bearing seedlings include jackfruit, guyabano, atis, and coffee.
Designated provincial nurseries participating in the program are located in:
* Maasin (Central Nursery)
* Guimbal, Alimodian, Calinog, Dingle, and Ajuy (Satellite Nurseries)
Other municipalities without provincial nurseries are also raising seedlings in their barangays, where residents may likewise participate in the seed exchange.
Peñaflorida emphasized that the rainy season is the ideal time to plant and urged more residents to contribute to the Tanum Iloilo cause, which supports the “MoRProGRes” (Movement for a Resilient and Progressive Green Province) framework of Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr.
Launched in 2019, “Tanum Iloilo” is the governor’s flagship environmental program that seeks to restore forests “from ridge to reef” and transform the province into a certified Forest Province through collective action and ecological stewardship./PN
