BAGUIO CITY — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is strongly recommending re-surgery to preserve pine trees, which it said should be given more focus and concern especially during these times when the ill effects of global warming and climate change are felt.

This was stressed by officials of the Cordillera office of the DENR during a forum in celebration of Earth Day, citing the urgent need to preserve and protect the dying trees to help mitigate the effects of climate change which is now taking its toll on agricultural crops, livestock and even human beings in almost all parts of the world.

DENR-CAR Eco-system Research and Development Service Officer-in-charge Fatima Pangan, Benguet pine trees in the city of Baguio especially those in the pine forest at the Convention Center should be given more focus and attention in terms of damage prevention.

“The communities and the public should be vigilant as the city’s pine trees are now being damaged through infestations, girdling, over-pruning and other man made activities,” Pangan said.

Based on recent DENR data, pine and some variety of trees around the city – 25 trees at the Burnham Park; 13 at the Botanical Garden; and 13 others in the Loakan Road area – are dying either due to infestations, girdling, over-pruning, cementing closely around the base, among others.

To save them, Pangan said that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources strongly recommends “re-surgery,” especially to the century old trees, which can still be salvaged.

“We have to preserve such trees for their contribution to climate change mitigation. DENR has the technology to preserve those trees through re-surgery,” Pangan said.

Pangan explained Department of Environment and Natural Resources has already implemented such procedures on some of the city’s trees, such as that in the SSS area, National Telecommunication Commission (NTC), Wright Park, Burnham Park and even in the neighboring municipality of Tublay.