TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan (PIA) -- The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) are encouraging local government units and the public to plant more bamboo as an alternative to lumber. 

DENR Regional Executive Director Gwendolyn C. Bambalan said they massively produce bamboo propagules for LGUs, civil society organizations, and other sectors willing to plant bamboo in the region. 

She said they eye bamboo as a better source of lumber aside from its benefit as a solution to climate change. 

"We have been strengthening our efforts in incorporating in our nursery establishment the production of bamboo aside from the indigenous and fruit tree species for our planting sites," Bambalan said. 

Mona Lisa Valle, resource generation officer of DTI, said bamboo is a good material in manufacturing and designing engineered house kits. 

She said there are ready markets for bamboo, including the Cubo Modular, an award-winning Filipino company that uses innovative building technologies and rapidly renewable engineered bamboo to manufacture smart and sustainable Filipino homes.

Officials of DENR Region 2 lead bamboo planting in identified bamboo plantation sites in Cagayan Valley region. (Photo courtesy of DENR 2)

She also said Cubo Modular alone needs 6,000 tons of giant bamboo and kawayang tinik species for mass production of bamboo houses and other products.

"All models of the Cubo Modular are all made up of bamboo. This is assessed to be providing at least P215 million in potential sales for local bamboo processors," she said. 

Since 2011, DENR reported a total of 4, 401 hectares of established bamboo sites planted with bayog, kawayang tinik, and kiling under the National Greening Program and the Build Back Better initiative of the government. 

The Cagayan  Valley Bamboo Industry Development Council was also created to boost further the bamboo industry in Cagayan Valley. 

Winston Singun, DTI assistant regional director, said bamboo is very important to the environment which is why they also advocate bamboo planting along the river bank and mountain slopes as it is best for mitigating erosions. 

"Growing bamboo is important as they can also sequester more carbon than any other type of tree. It can also aid in river bank stabilization," Singun said. 

He further stressed that bamboo is a versatile fast-growing plant that can also be a source of food, fuel, and as a raw material for the production of cloth.

Through the members of the bamboo development council, different species of bamboo were planted along the Cagayan River to prevent massive flooding in the low-lying areas in the region. (OTB/PIA Region 2)