BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO
BANAUE, Ifugao—With the successful restoration of abandoned rice terraces in their area, residents of Poitan village in this town look forward to their very first harvest this month.
The restoration of the rice terraces was made possible through the Partnership in Uplifting upland Natural resources, Livelihood, and Assets (Punla), which began in 2018 and aims to protect and restore the Upper Magat Watershed and bolster its surrounding communities.
An environment initiative of renewable energy solutions provider SN Aboitiz Power-Magat (SNAP-Magat), Punla is in partnership with the Ifugao municipalities of Hingyon, Mayoyao, Lagawe and Banaue.
Covering the rehabilitation of 6.41 hectares of rice terraces in Poitan village, this leg of the Banaue is projected to take three years and includes the reforestation of 48.44 hectares in the village as well as in the villages of Amganad and Balawis.
With this, around 4.4 hectares of the rice terraces, which have been unproductive for about five years now, would be restored.
Since the project broke ground in February, clearing and weeding, tilling, planting and maintenance activities have been done.
Joseph Yu, SNAP-Magat president and chief executive officer, said they set aside P4.3 million, of which P1.3 million was already released, on top of the local government unit’s earmarked funds.
For 2020, SNAP-Magat and Banaue targeted the rehabilitation of the abandoned rice terraces and reforestation of 2.41 hectares in Poitan village. A reforestation project for 20.73 hectares is targeted in Balawis village, also in Banaue, for 2021.
“Much like its English term seedling, Punla promises to grow even more. Hopefully, from this milestone will also come livelihood and enterprise development opportunities for communities within the watershed throughout the rest of the project’s implementation,” Yu said.
He added that with the cooperation and assistance from Banaue town Mayor John Wesley Dulawan and project development officer Andres Ordillo, SNAP’s Punla-Upper Magat Banaue project progresses into the year despite the limitations forced by the coronavirus pandemic.
“Other project activities such as procurement of agricultural support equipment, rehabilitation of water supply systems and more land preparation activities for reforestation are ongoing,” Yu said.
SNAP-Magat is a joint venture between SN Power of Norway and AboitizPower. It owns and operates the 360- to 388-megawatt (MW) Magat hydro on the border of Isabela and Ifugao and the 8.5-MW Maris hydro in Isabela.