Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 7) —Several wildfires have erupted in Antipolo and Tanay areas as Rizal province remains under total lockdown, a conservation park in the area reported Monday night.
FOREST FIRES RECORDED IN RIZAL
Last night, our team recorded forest fires around the Antipolo and Tanay areas. The call…
Posted by Masungi Georeserve on Monday, April 6, 2020
“Our team recorded forest fires around the Antipolo and Tanay areas. The call for vigilance for our forests extends not only to threats of quarrying and illegal logging, but also of forest fires as we enter the dry season,” Masungi Georeserve in Rizal said in its advisory on Facebook.
Citing the Food and Agriculture Organization, Masungi said forest fires are usually caused by humans for kaingin, charcoal production, or unintentionally out of negligence or carelessness.
”Many times, burned forests and degraded lands pave the way for land grabbing, conversion and unsustainable development when people say that ’burned lands are no longer forest lands’,” the management added.
“At the frontlines of forest protection, we continue to defend Masungi and surrounding areas against fires and attempts of quarrying amid the lockdown,” Masungi said.
“Now is the time to heighten forest protection all over the country,” it added.
Masungi did not indicate whether the fires are likely to reach the conservation area anytime soon.
Luzon has been placed under an enhanced community quarantine since March 17 as the government addresses the rising cases of COVID-19 in the country.
This has led to temporary suspension of jobs and other means of income, especially among daily wage and low income earners in the region.
