Kuwentong Peyups

Atty. Dennis Gorecho

Cutting of trees is  “an act of ecological violence” and a “direct assault on the poor.”

The tree-cutting  of   225 trees along Quirino Avenue to give way   to the Southern Access Link Expressway (SALEx) project is  “an act of ecological violence” and a “direct assault on the poor.”

“Why must ‘development’ always demand the sacrifice of the vulnerable? Why are our cities designed for vehicles and concrete instead of for children, workers, pedestrians, and the elderly?”, asked Bishop Gerardo Alminaza, president of Caritas Philippines.

Bishop Alminaza  stressed that the removal of mature trees  will  directly harm commuters, workers, and families facing extreme urban heat and flood.

SALEx is a proposed 40.62-kilometer expressway featuring both elevated viaduct and shoreline sections.

SALEx will traverse portions of Quirino Avenue, San Marcelino Street, and areas terminating near Roxas Boulevard, where it will connect to the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3. The Quirino Avenue segment spans 3.97 km and features four elevated lanes.

The tree-cutting of 617 trees to make way for  SALEx has been approved by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

The DENR earlier defended the tree cutting along  Quirino Avenue, saying it was legally authorized and subject to strict environmental safeguards.

The agency also cited Presidential Decree No. 705, PD 953, and other existing forestry and environmental regulations, which allow the cutting or earth-balling of trees when necessary for infrastructure projects, public works, and other development activities.

It added that SMC is mandated to plant 57,000 seedlings in Manila in line with the memorandum on seedling replacement uniform ratio to “offset” the trees that were cut.

On average, most trees take 10 to 30 years to reach full maturity. However, the exact timeline depends heavily on the species, whether you start from a seed or a sapling, and local growing conditions.

225 trees have been felled so far, including a 50-year-old narra tree, which earned criticisms and protest from environmental and civil society  groups.

“We refuse to hide this injustice behind bureaucratic language. What is legal on paper is not automatically moral in the eyes of God,” Bishop Alminaza said.

Trees combat urban heat through shade and evapotranspiration, reducing local surface temperatures by up to 8 degrees Celcius.

They cool the air by  blocking  solar radiation and release water vapor. In areas like Metro Manila, increasing urban canopy is crucial for combating the urban heat island effect.

Trees intercept sunlight, preventing concrete and asphalt from absorbing and radiating heat.

As nature’s sponges and barriers,  trees are also highly effective at preventing and reducing floods.  These  act as nature’s original flood defense by intercepting rainfall with their leaves, slowing water runoff, and using deep roots to absorb water and stabilize soil.

The  leaves and branches act like a giant umbrella, catching rainfall and slowing the rate at which water hits the ground. This reduces flash flooding and prevents heavy rain from slamming into the soil.

 Tree roots draw massive amounts of water out of the ground, which then evaporates back into the atmosphere through transpiration.

As tree roots grow, they create underground air gaps and loosen compacted soil. This allows rainwater to sink deeply into the earth rather than pooling on the surface and running off into overtaxed storm drains.

 A strong root network holds soil firmly together, preventing the ground from washing away during heavy downpours

Removing trees accelerates surface water runoff and erosion, which drastically increases flood risks—a major issue across Metro Manila, where urban development and tree clearing continually compound these vulnerabilities,

The removal of the trees along Quirino Avenue aggravates the worsening  loss of green spaces  in Metro Manila.

According to DENR 2020 data, the National Capital Region contains only 22.05 square kilometers of forest cover across 619.54 square kilometers of urban concrete.

One of the remaining green spaces is the Diliman campus of the University of the Philippines.

Canopied by over a hundred old, sturdy Acacia trees, the Diliman academic oval is a pollution-free haven not just for runners, but also bikers. They  offer much needed shade and bring in a relieving breeze even in the scorching heat.

A favorite photo backdrop is the scenic view of the way the branches of the trees from the left side of the street meet with those from the right side, forming some kind of archway.

Most of the trees are as old as the campus itself as the Acacias were the first trees planted after the transfer of UP to Diliman in the late 1940s.

The fiasco should have been avoided if tree balling was done instead of cutting the tree down . It  is an eco-friendly tree-transplanting method where a tree is excavated with its root system and surrounding soil kept entirely intact. The root ball is shaped circularly, wrapped in burlap, and relocated .

(Peyups is the moniker of the University of the Philippines. Atty. Dennis R. Gorecho heads the Seafarers’ Division of the Sapalo Velez Bundang Bulilan Law Offices. For comments, e-mail info@sapalovelez.com, or call 0908-8665786.)