Apayao eagle habitat eyed as Unesco protected area

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — The Philippine Eagle sanctuary in the virgin forest of Calanasan town in Apayao is being eyed to become a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Biodiversity and Protected Area.

This to ensure that the virgin forests will remain preserved and protected to allow the eagle sanctuary to thrive and the Philippine Eagle population to multiply.

Apayao boasts over 286,000 hectares of virgin forests that could stand for over 64 kilometers around the province.

During the 3rd Cordillera Environment Summit organized by the Environmental Management Bureau - Cordillera, Apayao Gov. Elias Bulut Jr. said the groundwork for the inclusion of the eagle sanctuary in Calanasan as one of the few biodiversity and protected areas is a partnership among the Apayao provincial government, the Philippine Eagle Foundation and the United States Foreign Service.

Four Apayao provincial employees are presently in the US undergoing training with the US Foreign Service in preparation for the implementation of a long line of activities geared toward the realization of the plan.

Some 15 Philippine eagles have been sighted in Calanasan well within the thickly forested area, according to Bulut.

An inventory is still being conducted on how many of this eagle species are in the other towns.

Apayao takes pride in being one of the few provinces in the country with an approved forest land use plan (FLUP).  Efforts to empower the newly elected barangay officials in the province’s 142 barangays to strictly monitor the activities of the residents in their areas of jurisdiction so as not to affect the current state of the virgin forests are heightened.

Although development is inevitable because of the increasing population aggravated by migration, Bulut reiterated that necessary regulations must be established to reduce the impact of man-made activities to the environment and efforts to preserve and protect the virgin forest for the benefit of the present and future generations.

Apayao’s approved FLUP bans slash-and-burn farming in slopes having more than 18 degrees of elevation so that the forest cover of the place will be preserved, enhanced and protected to guarantee the existence of the virgin forests in the province even up to the next century.

Apayao is considered as the last frontier of nature in Northern Luzon because of the existence of vast tracts of virgin forests that help maintain a good state of the environment and abundant wildlife.