In 2018, Pueblo de Oro Development Corporation (PDO) embarked on a year-long mangrove planting project in the province of Cebu. Together with the Bagasawe Farmers and Fishermen Association (BFFA), a community-based non-government organization, Pueblo de Oro planted some 65,000 mangrove propagules.
The planting activity was held in the shoreland of Barangay Bagasawe in the town of Tuburan as well as within the Pueblo de Oro property in Sitio Judas Belt, Barangay Babag II in Lapu-Lapu City.
The Sitio Judas Belt leg aimed to protect the adjacent Pilipog River and Mactan Channel from erosion. Pueblo de Oro provided a 20-meter-wide mangrove reserve within its property along the channel.
Five years later, Pueblo de Oro and their volunteers can look with pride at the results of their labor. The 30 percent survival rate of the planted seedlings and propagules is a significant achievement and is considered effective in coastal protection by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) which has set a 20 percent survival threshold.
Mangroves with strong roots stabilize the coastline and prevent erosion from waves and storms. Mangrove forests eventually become home to a large variety of fish, crabs, shrimp, and mollusks, further contributing to Cebu’s biodiversity.
But the work doesn’t end. Pueblo de Oro’s commitment to enhancing the natural environment is one of the pillars by which all of its projects are anchored. The company’s team in Cebu also partners with the ICCP Group Foundation, Inc. (IGFI) in planting trees in barangays in Cebu.
In July 2023, PDO and IGFI conducted a tree planting and growing activity at Barangay Taba-ao, Municipality of Tabogon in Cebu. They were joined by members and officers of the people’s organization Nagkahiusang Mag-uuma sa Taba-ao Association (NAGMATA), DENR Region 7-CENRO Officer Gladys Flores, and Visayas State University forestry students. They planted over 2,300 pieces of Molave species of trees.
Previously, Pueblo de Oro planted around 550 Indian trees and five Narra trees on the roadsides of Park Place Residences in Barangay Babag II, Lapu-Lapu City. Twenty-eight PDO employees volunteered for the planting activity held over two days.
In June 2019 and in coordination with the Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD), the IGFI and PDO also undertook a tree planting activity, with over 30 employees and volunteers from PDO-Cebu and MCWD planting over 300 fruit-bearing trees in the mountainous slope of Barangay Pung-Ol Sibugay in Cebu City.
“When we plant trees, we aren’t just ‘planting trees’, we’re changing lives,” said a Pueblo de Oro official. These activities are in line with the company’s commitment to environmental sustainability, ensuring residents of a lifestyle that is safe and worry-free in an environment that is conducive to raising a family.
