THIRTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
SENATE 
S. No. 
2 
INTRODUCED BY HON. MANUEL B. VILLAR, JR. 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The preamble of the Constitution provides that we should establish a Government which 
shall “conserve and develop our patrimony.” Our “patrimony” includes our public forests, 
mangroves, wildlife, and flora and fauna which should be conserved, protected and renewed. 
This measure seeks to achieve that end as a national policy and sets forth an eight-point 
comprehensive program framework. 
This bill provides for classification and percentages allocation of public forests. Protected 
public forests are envisioned to comprise at least sixty percent of all public forests. Production 
forests are proposed to comprise not more than twenty percent and ago-forestry projects to cover 
not more than twenty percent of public forests. It is estimated that there are about 15 million 
hectares of public forest land. 
The object of this bill is to rehabilitate public forest lands and revert areas presently 
denuded and eroded to become thriving forest reserves. 
A coordinating council headed by the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources is 
to be created and a Fund for conservation, protection and renewal is contemplated. The Fund will 
consist of public funds, donations and fees and imposts from users of the national patrimony. 
The dismal conditions of our public forests today is a sad commentary of our wanton and 
mindless exploitation of our forest resources. Ideally, our reforestation rate should be at least 
five times our deforestation rate and should surpass deforestation within the next five years. 
This we can do by embarking on a massive reforestation program and rehabilitation of 
our forest lands. 
Immediate approval of this bill is highly recommended. 


THIRTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
SENATE 
S. No. 
728 
INTRODUCED 
BY HON. MANUEL B. VELAR, JR. 
AN ACT TO CONSERVE AND PROTECT THE PUBLIC FORESTS, MANGROVES 
AND WILDLIFE THEREIN THROUGH A PROGRAM OF RENEWAL, 
REFORESTATION AND REPLANTING, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
ass ein bled: 
SECTION 1. Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Conservation, Protection and 
Renewal of the Nation's Patrimony Act." 
SEC. 2. Declaration of National Policy and Program Framework. - It is hereby declared 
the policy of the State to conserve, protect, and renew public forests, mangroves and the wildlife 
therein. To these ends, the State hereby adopts the following comprehensive program 
frameworlts : 
(a) The specific limits of public forests, national parks and other forest reserve areas, 
including mangroves with forest cover, shall be determined, and public forests of the public 
domain shall constitute at least fifty percent (50%) of the lands of the public domain classified as 
follows: production forest, about 3 million hectares or not more than twenty percent (20%) of 
public forest lands; ago-forest, about 3 million hectares or not more than twenty percent (20%) 
of public forest lands; and protection and conservation forest, at least nine (9) million hectares or 
at least sixty percent (60%) of the public forests. 
(b) There shall be a "buffer area" between the protection and conservation forest and other 
forests. Between alienable agricultural lands of the public domain or private agricultural land and 
protection and conservation forests a "buffer area" of natural or replanted forested area of at least 
one (1) square kilometer, shall be declared in order to conserve and protect public forests and 
wildlife therein. 
(c) Public forests under lease and/or which have been denuded and deforested due to 
logging shall be reforested, with tree species of its original forested state or similar specie, and 
reclassified protection and conservation forest, until the limits provided in paragraph one hereof 
shall have been attained. 
(d) Mangroves without forest cover which have been utilized and cut to the detriment of 
ecological balance and to the destruction of marine, air and other wildlife which take sanctuary 
therein shall be replenished with the mangrove and other species of plants and reseeded with the 
wildlife which would naturally be supposed to thrive therein. They shall be reclassified reserve 
swamps and mangroves and/or protection and conservation forests. 


(e) Virgin forests and public parks and forest reserves declared as such as of the approval of 
this Act shall in no case be opened for exploitation or reclassification and shall remain so within 
the limits of the area provided in paragraph one hereof as protection and conservation public 
forests. 
(0 Marine, air and wildlife, including the endangered species of Philippine fauna, shall be 
returned as protected wildlife within animal reserves or selected public forests such that a 
balance will be attained within the forests of the wildlife therein and the resources to maintain 
the survival of these fauna. 
(g) Philippine flora, both natural to our forests and those which would enhance ecological 
balance and the productivity and aesthetic value of our public forests, shall be replanted and 
maintained in the public forests. 
(h) Areas of the public forests leased or tolerated for use for social forestry or ago-forestry 
shall be limited to the area and percentage of the total public forests herein provided. These areas 
shall be replenished and renewed with flora and fauna compatible with ecological balance and 
the productivity required for the survival and development of the forestry-dependent 
comniunities permitted to participate in the ago-forestry program. 
SEC. 3. Coordinating Council for the Conservation, Protection and Renewal of the 
Nation's Patrimony. - There is hereby created a Coordinating Council for the Conservation, 
Protection and Renewal of the Nation's Patrimony. The Council shall be headed by the Secretary 
of Environment and Natural Resources as Chairman, with the Undersecretaries of Agriculture 
and Food and of Education, Culture and Sports as Vice-Chairmen. The members shall include 
three (3) representatives from the; government sector and three (3) representatives from the 
private sector appointed by the President of the Philippines upon the recommendation of the 
Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources. 
The Council shall formulate policies and develop projects to implement the national policy 
and program framework as defined in this Act, It shall also promulgate rules and regulations to 
carry out the purposes of this Act and adopt a code of services and guidelines to conserve, protect 
and renew the nation's patrimony in accordance with Section Two hereof. 
To assist the Council, the Chairman shall designate an Executive Secretary and a 
Secretariat from among the staff of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, with 
such allowances as may be approved by the Council. The per diems and allowances of the 
Council shall be approved by the Council, subject to the existing rules and regulations and 
auditing and accounting laws. 
SEC. 4. Reforestation and Renewal Program by the Youth. - Subject to such rules and 
~-egulations as the Council niay promulgate, students and community youth below the age of 
twenty-five (25) years, shall be harnessed for the reforestation and renewal of public forests, 
mangrove and wildlife therein. The youth shall be provided such allowances and wages as may 
be a proved by the Council, but in no case less than the minimum wage for equal work as 
provided by law. 
SEC. 5. Relationship. - with Agricultural and Fisheries Schools. Subject to such rules and 
regulations as the Council may promulgate, agricultural and fisheries schools, botch public and 
private, shall participate in the projects of this program to the end that science and appropriate 
technology learned in the schools will be applied to public forests, mangroves and the renewal of 
wildlife, both during the training of students and thereafter as professionals within the public or 
private sectors. 
SEC. 6. Report to the Nation on the Status of the Nation's patrimony. - The Council shall 
give a report to the nation on the status of the Nation's Patrimony and the' progress of the 


I 
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Goveimnent in formulating policies and implementing projects on the eight-point comprehensive 
program framework. The report shall include: 
(a) Progression returning to the reserve pool of the national patrimony leased public forests 
and those opened for ago-forestry projects and the degree to which the required limits provided 
in Section Two hereof for production, agro-forestry and Conservation-protection forests are being 
aclii eved. 
(b) Information on every logging lease; particularly on the extent to which the denuded 
forests have been reforested and state of compliance, with scientific selective logging, as well as 
the species being replanted to renew the trees being cut. 
(c) Violations of contracts and ecological balance by users of production and agro-forestry 
public forests and the state of conservation-production public-forests, particularly the 
exploitation, if any, of virgin forests and park reserves'. 
(d) Hamessing of youth for the conservation and protection of the nation's patrimony, and 
the progress of partnership between the agricultural and fisheries schools and the government in 
the appropriate application of science and technology by the students and graduates of these 
schools. 
(e) Results of monitoring of forest products and forest flora and fauna which are marketed, 
both domestically and for export, and the comparison of these monitored products with approved 
logging and other forest-related leases and licenses, as well as the declared individual or 
corporate income of the users, lessees, or sellers of the forest products. 
(f) Record of prosecution for violations and/or revocation of lease or license as a result of 
vi o 1 at ions. 
(g) Record of recognition and, where warranted, commendation for compliance with 
contracts and reforestation and selective logging and other commendable activities which 
conserve, protect and renew the Nation's Patrimony. 
The Council shall render this report annually, or often as needed, and submit the same to 
the President and Congress and disseminate it to the public. 
SEC. 7. Conservation, Protection and Renewal Fund. - There is hereby authorized to be 
appropriated the amount of One Million Pesos (R1,000,000.00) for the operations of the Council, 
and Ten Million Pesos (R10,000,000.00) for the projects under this Act to conserve, protect and 
renew public, forests, mangroves, and the wildlife therein under the eight-point comprehensive 
program framework of this Act. 
Thereafter, the operating expenses of the Council and the projects planned and 
implemented under this Act shall a included in the budget of the Department of Environment and 
N Natural Resources as part of its annual appropriation under the program of "Conservation, 
Protection and Renewal of Public Forests, Mangroves and the Wildlife Therein." 
The Council may receive donations from national and international sources for the 
iinpleinentation of this Act or for a specific project or projects. 
The Council may also levy and impose fees and impositions on logging concessionaires 
and lessors of public forest lands in the required amount's to cover the reforestation of areas 
which these concessionaires and lessors have logged and which have not been reforested in 
accordance with sound environmental and ecological 'practices and principles. Such fees shall 
cover failure to reforest and practice scientific selective logging as of the approval of this Act. 
Such loggers who have denuded and deforested leased public lands shall have two (2) years from 
the approval of this Act to reforest the denuded areas in accordance with sound environmental 


and ecological practices and principles. Thereafter, the Council shall impose an amount 
equivalent to the cost of returning the denuded and logged area to its virgin state to be paid by 
the logger or concessionaire. If the I violation continues with other portions of the leased public 
forest, the lease or license shall be revolted by the Council. 
Donations received and fees or imposts collected shall be in a trust fLind-for specific 
purposes and projects, as approved by the Council, subject to existing auditing and accounting 
regulations-and the purposes of this Act. 
The program harnessing youth for reforestation shall be funded by project funds of the 
Council or from donations earmarked for the purpose. 
SEC. 8. Separability Clause. - If any part or provision of this Act is held unconstitutional 
or invalid, other, parts' or provisions hereof which are not affected thereby shall continue to be in 
full force and effect. 
SEC. 9. Repealing Clause. - $Any law, decree, rule, regulation, executive order or part 
thereof inconsistent with this Act is hereby repealed or modified accordingly. 
SEC. 10. Effectivity. - This Act shall be effective upon its apprsval and completion of its 
publication in at least two (2) national newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved, ,