A pleasing day to everyone. I want to share an insight of a local issue going on about the deforestation on SIERRA MADRE MOUNTAIN RANGES to build a new dam called KALIWA DAM. This mountain range is the longest mountain range in our country, it spans over 540 kilometers from the province of Cagayan down to the province of Quezon that formed a north-south direction to the eastern portion of Luzon which is the largest island of the archipelago. The highest point of Sierra Madre is Mount Bintuod, along the way to the provinces of AURORA,BULACAN,ISABELA,LAGUNA, NUEVA ECIJA,NUEVA VIZCAYA,QUEZON,QUIRINO and more. The mountain range is within the regions of CAGAYAN VALLEY, CALABARZON, and CENTRAL LUZON.

As we all know that our country is the most exposed country in the world to tropical typhoons, which can hit us anytime of the year especially on the months of June to September being most active. Along the years typhoons are not new to us, we expect it every year to come and SIERRA MADRE contributes most when typhoons are about to hit LUZON. The mountain became the protector of LUZON lessening the damage and floods that is to be caused by a typhoon. The Environmental group Haribon Foundation stated that the forest of Sierra Madre are able to lessen the typhoon’s wind speed. HARIBON quoted “SINCE THE SIERRA MADRE HAS A LARGE SURFACE AREA WITH MANY SLOPES AND CURVES, IT CAN BREAK THE EYE OF THE CYLONCE RESULTING IN A SLOWER WIND SPEED”.

A new centennial water source-KALIWA DAM. It is proposed by the Philippine Government in 2012. Which is illegal and immoral. It violets the Filipino people’s right, our rights to a sound of environment and disregards the rights of affected indigenous people and local communities. This project will not only have devastating effects on people’s lives, it will also ravage the homes of thousands of threatened wildlife species in the Sierra Madre mountain range including the critically endangered Philippine Eagle. Imagine the danger that kaliwa will send to our nature especially on the mountain range of Sierra Madre. And government are still trying to build this dam. We have enough dams in Luzon and Magat is enough for us having a major tributary of Cagayan River.

Now the issue here is, people are trying to stop the construction of Kaliwa Dam to prevent major loses in the mountain range of Sierra Madre. As typhoons hit the parts of the regions of CAGAYAN VALLEY, CALABARZON, and CENTRAL LUZON. Sierra Madre is there to protect the people of these regions. Currently, the valley of Cagayan screams for helps as the place is submerged by flood caused by the typhoon Ulysses. Lots of areas has been damaged by the current typhoon and there are post that saying “Cagayan is sinking”, imagine if Kaliwa is done by now, parts of the provinces of the regions could be submerged also by floods. We would be washed out to screaming and crying for help. And the government wouldn’t careless about the current issues, they are ignoring people’s voice.

Sign the petition to stop the making of KALIWA DAM, the government has done all the credit of destroying our nature. We are gifted with beautiful and rich environment but people filled with greed are destroying it. Save the mountain ranges of Sierra Madre before its too late. We should use our voices to be heard not in silence. We don’t want to be washed out and be ignored. Imagine all the floods in the regions of Cagayan valley, Calabarzon, and central Luzon that is happening today it will be much worse when Sierra Madre would die. Stop deforestation and all the illegal activities on nature. Nature can be our greatest protector and could also be our greatest enemy. Lets help and reconstruct a better plan for our nature