"They (DENR) should not be angry. You can plant trees wherever you want, but make sure they are placed in proper areas," Fernando said during the weekly Fernandina Media Forum held at the Club Filipino in Greenhills, San Juan.
The DENR earlier said they would ensure the survival of the trees by providing three-foot high saplings rather than seedlings. Officials said that they would also use trees that are indigenous to the areas for greater adaptability.
The DENR has been implementing the "Green Philippine Highways" (GPH) program to beautify areas along major roads and to combat the worsening air pollution.
However, Fernando said if they see that trees encroach the main roads, distract motorists and obstruct other projects being implemented by the agency, then they will act accordingly and uproot those trees and plant these elsewhere.
"We can remove trees. The government has the right to do it," Fernando said.
The GPH is a project of DENR Secretary Angelo Reyes, who intends to combat air pollution in the country by planting trees along the entire 2,175-kilometer stretch of the Pan-Philippine Highway from Laoag, going through Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, National Capital Region (NCR), Calabarzon to Bicol, passing Samar and Leyte and then to Eastern Visayas, and Caraga up to Davao City.
The project also covers the 824-kilometer West Nautical Highway, from Batangas through Mindoro, Aklan, Negros up to Zamboanga and Sibugay.
However, Fernando’s jurisdiction only covers Metro Manila.
Three years ago, the MMDA chief was criticized by environmental groups after he proposed the removal of trees on a center island along Katipunan Avenue near Ateneo de Manila University to achieve smoother flow of traffic in the area.