TUGUEGARAO CITY, May 22 (PIA) — With the implementation of the President’s Executive Order No. 23, timber poaching and illegal logging in Isabela province has drastically decreased based on the report of the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office-Isabela.

Forester Arnold Frogoso said in a press conference held at the Philippine Information Agency Region 2 that they recorded almost 90 percent downtrend of timber poaching cases in the whole of Isabela province since the issuance of the order banning illegal logging in all forest covers of the country.

Frogoso said that the environment officials as well as the law enforcers such as the police and army, in their joint effort of running after illegal loggers, successfully neutralized the rampant illegal activities in the forest zones of the province.

Meanwhile, to meet the objective of the Executive Order 26, Frogoso said that they have planted 5,000 hectares of land with different species of trees last year and they have targeted 6,000 hectares to be planted this year.

“We are proud to report that we accomplished thousands of hectares in our plantation areas with the support of different stakeholders who inked agreement with DENR to maintain and sustain a plantation area,” Frogoso said.

The tree species that were planted include mahogany, G-melina, narra, and fruit bearing trees such as mango, coconut, and others.