RAPU-RAPU, ALBAY (9 Jan) — With its commitment to the Green Philippines Project (GPP) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the mine firm Lafayette Philippines, Inc. (LPI) forged partnership recently with green group Rapu-Rapu Speechers Youth Movement.

        The activity was marked with a turn-over ceremony of seedlings graced by LPI president Carlos Dominguez.

        “We fully support initiatives for environmental concerns,” Dominguez said as he pledged more support to the group.

        The mine firm has produced 22,181 seedlings in 2007, of which 11,000 are already utilized. It also made a total donation of 5,365 seedlings during the past year, most of them for reforestation projects to various beneficiaries notably the DENR, schools, Church-based groups, peoples organizations, and local government units.

        Except for mahogany, most of the seedlings are indigenous or endemic including the hardwoods narra and molave. The company even extends support to reforestation projects in Camarines Sur, Albay and Sorsogon aside from its commitment to rehabilitate and implement reforestation in areas inside its mine development project at Barangay Pagcolbon this town.

        “We believe that Lafayette is one with us in our concern for the environment,” Pastor Cerial Ecalnir, the group’s adviser said.

        The group which started as a peer group of 12 and now numbering 50 advocating for watershed protection and mitigation of global warming “will plant the 500 seedlings from the mine firm at Rapu-Rapu Watershed in Barangay Poblacion.”

        The group is unperturbed with the alleged fish kill issue in Poblacion. “We stand neutral on the issue, we just want to plant trees, do concrete actions for environmental protection, and find solutions to problems instead of loose talks,” Pastor Ecalnir said. (JJJPerez, CARE RRMI/PIA)