Employees of JG Summit Petrochemicals Group (JGSPG) joined the observance of the World Wetlands Day on February 2, 2021 in a mangrove-planting activity organized by the Provincial Government Environmental and Natural Resources Office of Batangas (PGENRO), held in the municipality of San Luis in Batangas province.
Together with the Batangas PGENRO, a group of JGSPG employees joined local residents of Barangay Bagong Tubig in San Luis in planting 150 seedlings of the mangrove specie Avicennia over a 250-square meter area along the coastal area of the barangay. The activity aimed to enhance the propagation of mangrove in the area and promote environmental sustainability.
World Wetlands Day is celebrated around the world every 2nd of February. The 2021 observance marks the event’s 50th year since 1971, when the Convention on Wetlands was adopted. This year’s theme, “Wetlands and water”, was focused on highlighting the contribution of wetlands to the quality and quantity of freshwater in the planet.
According to the Convention on Wetlands, an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for conserving and using wetlands, and adopted by almost 90% of United Nations member states including the Philippines, both fresh and saltwater wetlands play a crucial role in supporting social and economic development.
Wetlands filter pollutants, provide protection from floods and storms, and help regulate the climate by capturing vast amounts of carbon. Wetlands are likewise a source of income for millions of people.
JGSPG recognizes the valuable contributions of wetlands. In 2019, JGSPG partnered with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to rehabilitate Wetland No. 8 in Barangay Manocmanoc in Boracay Island. Since the partnership’s launch in March 2019, JGSPG had undertaken various activities that included perimeter fencing, clean-up drives, information, education and communication campaigns for community residents and students, tree-planting, and the completion of a biodiversity center that now houses a tree nursery.
Care for the environment has always been one of JGSPG’s key foci in the area of sustainability and corporate social responsibility.
Another major JGSPG initiative for the environment is its One Million Trees Project. In 2020, the company donated 86,594 seedlings to different municipalities in Batangas and other civic organizations in the province. A total of 415,944 seedlings had been donated to various Batangas local government units and communities, government agencies, civic organizations, schools and employee volunteers since the project’s launch in 2016.
