The area was adopted by SM Prime Holdings and would be under the care of the people’s organization Tinig ng Mandaragat, as part of the “Baka1Bataan” or the mangrove adoption and protection efforts in Bataan under the Project TRANSFORM or the Transdisciplinary Approach for Resilient and Sustainable Communities through Multistakeholder Engagement.

 

The activity aims to reduce the vulnerability of coastal barangays to hazards, such as storm surges and typhoons, and to strengthen food security, biodiversity conservation, and ecotourism in the local community.

 

Through private-sector engagement, the DENR intends to improve the existing condition of mangrove areas in the province of Bataan and eventually, in the entire Central Luzon.

 

The DENR continues to urge other private stakeholders to adopt and protect mangrove plantations as it promotes a nature-based strategy for disaster risk reduction and management as well as climate change adaptation and mitigation. (-30-)