Groups want Mt. Apo closed to climbers

DAVAO CITY—Environmental groups are calling on President Duterte to stop the Protected Area and Management Board (PAMB) from reopening Mt. Apo to trekkers before the mountain can recover from the fire that destroyed more than 100 hectares of its forest cover last year.

Chinkie Pelino-Golle, acting director of the environment group Integrated Development Interventions, said the group wanted the President and Environment Secretary Gina Lopez to take a stand as the PAMB, through a resolution issued on March 23, opened Mt. Apo’s four entry points to climbers this summer.

The country’s highest peak at 2,954 meters above sea level, Mt. Apo is a favorite destination of outdoor enthusiasts but it was closed after a fire hit its forests last year.

Golle said an intensified rehabilitation of Mt. Apo should be done before allowing people to enter the mountain.

But Golle said PAMB’s resolution allowed 50 people to enter each point daily, for a total of 200 people for all entry points.

Livelihood lost

The PAMB earlier said it decided to open Mt. Apo to climbers based on the recommendations of local governments around the mountain.

Local officials said they wanted to give back to the indigenous peoples the livelihood they lost since Mt. Apo was closed to climbers last year.

Golle said they were calling on the PAMB and the local governments to reconsider their decision, saying Mt. Apo has not yet recovered from the fire. —JUDY QUIROS