Samar Island, the third largest island in the Philippines, contains one of the largest tracts of unfragmented rainforest in the country. For many years the conservation of this rich biodiversity was mismanaged due to civil unrest. In 2003 the Samar Island Nature Park was established preventing the islanders from hunting, logging and agriculture except in designated areas. Trees are not allowed to be cut unless they have been planted specifically for the purpose of harvesting. This law has helped to make tremendous headway with erosion control and the conservation of the many plant and animal species on the island. The downside to this is the fact that Samar Island is one of the most impoverished areas in the Philippines. The local people, forty five percent of who live below the national poverty line, suddenly lost their food and energy sources. Many jobs were created within the park and also in tourism but not nearly enough to sustain the population. Illegal logging on large scale by big companies as well as small scale tree cutters looking for trees for fuel is rampant. As well, there is an illegal trade of animals and birds in the area. The director of DNR was telling us about an incident a few years ago where an informer was murdered. Since then there has been a military presence here in the park.
This is an illegal logger. Kind of drives the point home, huh?
Part of the challenge and the point in the Model Forests reason for being, is trying to find common ground between a full moratorium on timber harvesting for the sake of conservation and meeting the needs of the local inhabitants.
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