A LAWMAKER on Tuesday batted for the passage of a bill creating a body tasked with the conservation and management of the 500 kilometer-long Sierra Madre mountain range.
Rep. Fidel Nograles of Rizal issued the call after President Marcos called attention to deforestation in the Sierra Madre, which he saw during an aerial inspection over Marikina and Antipolo to assess ecological damage by typhoon Enteng.
“I hope that the President’s recent statement about Sierra Madre’s deforestation will serve as a nudge in the right direction for us in Congress to prioritize the creation of the Sierra Madre Development Authority (SMDA). This bill is a much-needed intervention as it seems that every typhoon that enters Luzon leaves us reeling and helpless,” Nograles said.
The lawmaker authored House Bill 1972, which is currently pending at the House Committee on Government Enterprises and Privatization,
