AMPAYON, Butuan City – To provide science and technology (S&T) support to tree farming and wood-based industry in the Caraga region, the Philippine Industrial Tree Plantation Species Research and Innovation Center (Phil-ITPS Center) will soon be established.
The center will be established by the Caraga State University (CSU) with funding from the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD).
Led by Dr. Rowena Varela, CSU Vice President for Research and Extension, the program involves developing of a geodatabase of Industrial Tree Plantations (ITPs) in Caraga region using remote sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS). The research team will also observe practices in the wood industry and analyze the utilization of wood wastes from tree farms in the region.
With the implementation of Executive Order No. 23 stating a moratorium on the cutting and harvesting of timber in the natural and residual forests, many wood processing enterprises (WPEs) shut down due to the lack of provisions that guarantee the sustainability of the tree farming-wood processing system.
Despite the closure of many WPEs, tree farming in the region continues to be strong. Some tree farmers see new opportunities opened for wood to be used as a source of bioenergy and for direct export to China and other countries, thus the need for an institution that looks closely into the wood industry.
According to Dr. Varela, the ITPS Center aims to develop innovative products with potential for industrial scale production utilizing the wood wastes at the farm level and at the WPEs level and create innovative and contemporary furniture designs that fit to the demands of small spaces in condominiums and mass housing units. The center also aims to evaluate the potential of ITPS wood in bioenergy production and improve the performance of the ITPS supply chain for policy formulation/reforms. Training of tree farmers in innovative utilization of ITPS timber will likewise be supported in the center.
This program is expected to end in 2022 with a vision to provide the scientific basis in improving the timber production-processing-marketing linkage of the ITPS and generate information on market development and other potentials of the wood industry.