ENVIRONMENT: Students rally to aid reforestation plan

STUDENTS in Chitre are hard at work in the early a stages of an ambitious program to plant 70,000 bags of fruit and timber seedlings in the La Villa river basin.

 So far they have filled 6,000 bags with pine seedlings, coffee, mahogany, rosewood, cashew and guabo in a nursery in Ocú, all destined for a 240 hectares location.
 Alcibiades Bustavino, who heads the water basin authority in the province of Herrera, said that there are plans to have 70,000 bags o both fruit and timber seedlings that will be planted in the river basin La Villa.
After this process there are 240 hectares available to start planting these fruit plants.
Additionally Pablo Bermudez, of the NGO Mundo Verde, said that they are managing the planting of 10,000 hectares with seedlings of different species used to make what are known as “living fences” in the Azuero region . The program ranks as one of the main proposals for forest recovery in the area. In recent years living fences on cattle farms have been replaced by dry stakes.
On a recent tour of the province of Los Santos, Environment Minister, Mirei Endara, announced the signing of an agreement with the National Bank to support the reforestation of a million hectares.
Under the agreement, the National Bank undertakes to provide credit and financing for the agricultural sector where sound environmental measures are practiced.
The purpose is to reduce environmental risks related to climate change, and promote reforestation and forest enrichment, sustainable forestry and fruit growing and promote new agricultural credit facilities with an environmental focus.
Endara said that the plan is not just commercial reforestation, but also planting trees in order to re-establish water retention, regenerate forests and enable the recovery of degraded soils.