Bill to conserve 97 protected areas OK’d

MANILA, Philippines - The Senate has approved a bill seeking to strengthen the conservation of 97 protected areas in the country.

Sen. Loren Legarda, author of the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System (ENIPAS) Act of 2015, said there are 113 declared protected areas in the country, but only 13 have been legislated as such under Republic Act 7586 or the National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Act. 

The law was enacted in 1992 and Legarda said it took an average of one year and seven months for Congress to pass a law for each protected area.

With the ENIPAS bill, Legarda said efforts to help unprotected areas such as the open seas, wetlands and tropical forests would be strengthened.

“Through this measure, local communities and stakeholders will be able to participate in the management and protection of our forests, oceans, flora, fauna and the indigenous peoples that reside in these sanctuaries,” she said.

At present, Legarda said the Protected Area Management Bureaus of each area are implementing programs to conserve the country’s biodiversity.