Aklan gov seeks guidelines on roadside stocking of bamboos

2010/07/20

Aklan gov seeks guidelines on roadside stocking of bamboos

by Venus G. Villanueva

Kalibo, Aklan (20 July) -- There is a need for regulations and guidelines on the stocking of bamboos for sale along Aklan roadsides, as well as in determining the right distance of junkshops from the national highway now sprouting like mushrooms in the province.

This need was stressed here recently by Aklan Governor Carlito S. Marquez during the Provincial Price Coordination Council (PDCC) meeting even as he said that vending bamboos and operating junkshops in Aklan are now lucrative businesses.

Governor Marquez said piles of bamboo for sale should be kept away from traffic because of the danger posed to residents and commuters, while junkshops should also be kept away from the national highway for the same reasons.

He said a memorandum for this purpose should be issued to local government units, and requested the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), a member of the council, if it could look into the matter, issue a memorandum, and release guidelines.

Most Aklan towns are bamboo producers/growers.

The price of bamboo in Kalibo now ranges from P120.00, P100.00 and P80.00 pesos per pole, depending on sizes, although its farm-gate price is very minimal. The increase in price, according to council members, is due to the distance of the source. Libacao town, a big producer of bamboo, hauls its stocks through the Aklan River or through jeeps, buses and hired trucks from Libacao to Kalibo.

In the same meeting, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) announced its flagship project - "engineered" bamboo, which will make it easier for bamboo growers to make money out of their produce without going through the hard way of hauling bamboos down to Kalibo.

DTI-Provincial Director Diosdado P. Cadena, Jr. said that the project involves providing companies with bamboo slats of regulated thickness and length for processing into bamboo lumber, which will be used by the Department of Education (DepEd) as wood substitute in making chairs and desks.

The project will also provide jobs for the community and encourage them to plant bamboo to sustain the project and to protect the environment, for its capacity to sequester carbon dioxide. (PIA)

Cabatuan.com - Kasimanwa.com - Diosdado Cadena Jr.