BAGUIO CITY”•SM City Baguio reaffirmed its overwhelming support to the efforts of the concerned government agencies and the local government by planting 50,000 assorted tree saplings in different plantation sites this year.
Last July 14, a day before the 30th founding anniversary of the Cordillera Administrative Region, some 250 SM City Baguio employees, together with representatives from the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office, local government of Baguio, Baguio Regreening Movement and the Baguio Water District, trooped to the Busol watershed.
There, they planted 20,000 assorted saplings as part of the company’s commitment to bring back the greenery of the city’s environment.
These saplings were part of the 50,000 committed by the company within the Busol watershed, as Deyan Construction, SM City Baguio’s reforestation contractor, will be the one to plant the remaining balance of unplanted trees.
SM City Baguio’s contractor will be planting another 50,000 Benguet pine saplings in the perimeter of the 139-hectare property in Sto. Tomas School Area and Camp 7 for the remainder of the year.
Last year, SM City Baguio planted some 50,000 assorted tree saplings within the perimeter of the city-owned property in Sto. Tomas and Camp 7 with the support of employees from the local government, to jumpstart its commitment to plant 500,000 assorted tree saplings in the different parts of the city within five years.
From 2012 to 2014, the mall giant planted within the Busol watershed 24,092 assorted tree saplings, which was the initial wave of trees planted within the city’s premier watershed that supplies some 40 percent of the city’s potable water supply.
SM Prime holdings committed to plant 1 million assorted tree saplings all over the country, with 500,000 saplings to be planted within the watershed areas of Baguio to help improve the greenery of the city’s environment.
Under its reforestation contract with SM, Deyan is obliged to maintain the planted trees for three years until the planted trees are growing independently.
SM still has a balance of some 350,000 assorted tree saplings that will be planted in the different parts of the city. Its commitment to plant the half a million trees within five years could be shortened depending on the availability of the planting sites where the saplings will be planted and maintained by its contractor.
SM City Baguio assured stakeholders it remains committed in helping concerned government agencies and the local government sustain their environmental preservation and protection programs to be able to maintain the city’s forest cover instrumental in balancing its cool climate for the benefit of the present and future generations.