A PETITION to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Region XI to (i) CANCEL Private Land Timber Permit No. RXI-PLTP-001 2021 issued for the cutting of 121 old-growth trees within the MMACA, (ii) AFFIRM MMACA’s designation as an ENVIRONMENTALLY CRITICAL AREA in the Davao City WATERSHED MANAGEMENT CODE (ORD.NO. 0310-07), and (iii) IMPROVE MMACA’s protection as a CONSERVATION AREA.

Sign this petition and help…

SECURE a community lifeblood

The MMACA is an 8,819-hectare “Conservation Area” which supports the lives and livelihoods of over 6,000 residents of Barangay Salaysay in the uplands of Davao City. The natural resources of the MMACA have also sustained the Indigenous Obu Manuvu ways of life and culture since time immemorial.

SPARE a Philippine eagle nesting territory

The MMACA is an ANCIENT nesting site of a Philippine Eagle pair. The eagle couple’s first nest was recorded by the Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) in 1986. The eagle pair hatched and raised at least twelve (12) young eagles in five (5) nesting trees within MMACA since then. However, based on Obu Manuvu oral history in Salaysay, the mighty Banog (or Philippine Eagle) has always existed in the area.

Each territorial pair of our national bird is very loyal to the places where they breed. At each eagle territory, a single chick is carefully raised by its eagle parents once every two years. Eagle nesting sites are crucial areas for reproduction, and for the perpetuation of the species. Maintaining MMACA’s ecological integrity is therefore critical to the survival of our national symbol.

SAVE water, air, and biocultural sanctuary

The natural forests of MMACA replenish the aquifers of Davao City’s Suawan-Kulafu-Sub-Watershed. This sub-watershed is within the Davao City River Basin. The area’s old-growth forest also feeds the Masawang River – an over 10 km waterway that joins the Davao River downstream. The same forest is also a carbon sink that mitigates global climate changes.

Apart from the “critically endangered” Philippine eagle, MMACA is also home to a few more threatened wildlife species. For instance, at least 40 species of birds were recorded there, and three are close to extinction, including the IUCN “vulnerable” Southern Rufous Hornbill and “Near-threatened” Yellow-crowned flowerpecker.  The Philippine Deer, and the Philippine Warty Pig, both IUCN “vulnerable” also inhabit MMACA.  

The MMACA also overlaps with the ancestral domain of the Indigenous Obu Manuvu of Davao City. And within the area, endangered wildlife species such as the Philippine eagle, Philippine Deer, Southern Rufous Hornbill, and their habitats were sanctified as PUSAKA. As a philosophy and practice, PUSAKA secures items, animals, and lands as “very important” and “sacred” because of its cherished cultural value.

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We are also running a parallel petition calling for action from Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte. Please support this call too. 

Save Macabol Forest and Watershed in Brgy. Salaysay, Davao City | BATARIS

APART FROM SIGNING THIS PETITION, WE URGE EVERYONE TO EMAIL THE DENR XI DECISION-MAKERS THE FOLLOWING:

I am _______, and I support the petition to save Mts. Makabol-Alikoson Conservation Area because we need to:

• SECURE the lifeblood of all the residents of Barangay Salaysay in Davao City
• SPARE the only home for a family of the IUCN “critically endangered” the Philippine Eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi) - the country’s national bird
• SAVE the Makabol-Alikoson watershed, airshed, and bio-cultural sanctuary

Kindly include your name in the message and send it to:

Regional Executive Director, Bagani Fidel Evasco | r11@denr.gov.ph

Assistant Regional Director for Technical Services, Victor Billones | denrecordsxi@gmail.com

Community Environment and Natural Resource Officer for Davao City, Marvin Parilla | cenrodavao@denr.gov.ph

The Covid-19 pandemic, the biodiversity crisis, and global climate change are alarming calls for us to protect our very few remaining natural areas. WE NEED TO ACT NOW.

This petition is spearheaded by the following organizations:

Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability​, ECOTENEO​, Save Macabol Initiative,  and Students’ Environmental Alliance of Davao, and Philippine Eagle Foundation