Mt. Irid-Angelo Sierra Madre, Luzon

Home , Bulacan, General Nakar, Pampanga River, Quezon, Rizal

Site Profile

Mt. Irid-Angelo photo © Haribon Foundation

Forest Country: Philippines. Governance Project Site Name: Mount Irid-Angelo, Sierra Madre, Luzon. Strengthening Non-state Actor Location: Mt. Irid and Mt. Angelo are located in the southern Involvement in Forest Governance in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Sierra Madre mountains along the boundaries between the Papua New Guinea. provinces of Bulacan, Quezon and Rizal. It is around 40 km North-East of Manila, capital city of the Philippines. Mt. Irid Contents • Country rises to 1,448 m and Mt. Angelo to 1,315 m. Despite its close • Site Name • Location proximity to the city, there are very few roads into these rugged • Site Area • Biodiversity mountains, and they are sparsely populated. • Conservation Approaches • About FOGOP

This project is funded by the European Union Site Profile Mt. Irid-Angelo

Site Area: The Sierra Madre forests are extremely which is declared as a National Park and Wildlife important in providing ecosystem services on which Sanctuary or Game Refuge. Kaliwa Watershed has dense human populations depend. Mt. Irid-Angelo about 28,000 ha of forests, ancestral and agricultural serves as a major watershed for the Pampanga River lands. Basin, Angat Dam and La Mesa Dam, and a major power and water source for Metro Manila. Covering Biodiversity: around 135,527 hectares, this tract of old-growth • Contains one of the largest remaining forest blocks forests is among the few remaining forest blocks in in the country. the country. • Part of the Endemic Bird Area of the Greater Luzon. These two neighboring mountains hold environmental • Home to the majestic Philippine Eagle and other and cultural values being the haven of some critically endangered species such as the Luzon critically-endangered Philippine Eagles in Luzon and Bleeding Heart, Warty Pig and Luzon Brown Deer. the ancestral home of the Dumagat-Remontado • Sanctuary of over 88 bird and 17 mammal species; indigenous peoples. Mts. Irid-Angelo also hosts the of which 40% are endemic. Kaliwa Watershed Forest Reserve, while portion of • Significant stand of old growth dipterocarp forests. Site Profile Mt. Irid-Angelo

Threats

Illegal logging. Small scale mining. Slash and burn agriculture (locally known as kaingin).

Road construction. Proposed development of Unregulated collection of non- Wildlife hunting (pet trade).

large dams. timber products. Albert Balbutin / Haribon. Thaddeus Martinez / Haribon. Small logs photo by Road photo by

Conservation approaches: A wide range of land tenure instruments are in place, including two Protected Areas declared in the Presidential Proclamation 1636 in the 1970s (total of 42,375 ha but with little or no enforcement), two Watershed Reservations (covering 50,000 ha), two areas with Certificates of Ancestral Domain Claims (166,000 ha of land and marine area of General Nakar, Quezon), and a privately-titled land area dating to Spanish colonial times (Green Circle Resources Properties Inc., around 50,000 ha).

The Haribon Foundation for the Conservation of Natural Resources, Inc. implemented the European Union-funded project known as the Governance and Local Development of Endangered Forests (GOLDEN Forests) which aimed to protect the remaining forests of key biodiversity areas such as Mts. Irid-Angelo. By the end of the project, two people’s organizations were formed and formally registered and biodiversity-friendly livelihood opportunities were opened The majestic Philippine Eagle (Pithecophaga jefferyi) in the Sierra Madre. to support income generation and food security. Photo by David Quimpo / Haribon Foundation.

This site is also under the Forest of Hope (FOH) corporate partnerships on forest restoration were sealed, Programme that aims to prevent deforestation and promote community participation in natural resource management rainforestation in the country. FOH delivers long-term forest and economic development was incorporated, the conservation solutions by restoring and protecting “open Important Biodiversity Area Monitoring System (IBAMS) access” forests identified in the Forest Land Use Plan was introduced and the Adopt-A-Seedling (AAS) under the (FLUP) of the municipality of Gen. Nakar, Quezon. Under ROAD to 2020 movement was implemented to promote the programme, Forest Land Use Plans (FLUP) of the forest restoration by using native tree species. municipalities of General Nakar and Infanta were approved, Site Profile Mt. Irid-Angelo

Above: Communities living in and around Mt. Irid- Angelo join an input session in Quezon province. Photo by Stephanie Lim / Haribon Foundation.

Left: A woman looks to a neighbor as they give insights on Mt. Irid-Angelo during a participatory situational analysis. Photo by Stephanie Lim / Haribon Foundation.

Forest Governance Project:

Philippine forests are home to some of the world’s unique and threatened species. It also provides indispensable ecological services for millions of Filipinos. As forests continue to disappear, the Strengthening Non-State Actor Involvement in Forest Governance in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea or Forest Governance Project (FoGoP) aims to increase participation of non-state actors in various forest governance processes. Effective forest conservation is possible with strengthened governance mechanisms. Local communities must also be empowered with technical knowledge, platforms, and skills to establish forest monitoring programs to effectively contribute to forest management and land use planning processes.

Through the establishment and strengthening of community networks and between cross-national networks, the Forest Governance Project or FoGoP aims to enhance information sharing and empower non-state actors in advocacies concerning forest conservation. The project is being implemented over a 5-year period (2017-2021), with focus on capacity building for effective engagement in forest management and policy processes. It will also complement existing forest conservation initiatives. Haribon Foundation for the Conservation of Natural Resources, Inc. is currently implementing this project in three sites in the Philippines. Mt. Hilong-Hilong is one of the sites.

References: Forest of Hope Site Profile, 2005. Rodel D. Lasco, R.D., Pulhin, F.B., Cruz, R.O., 2007. Carbon Stocks Assessment of Forest Land Uses in the Kaliwa Watershed, Philippine Journal of Environmental Science and Management Vol. 10. No. 2. Golden Forest Project Report, November 2011.