PUMASA sa ikatlo at huling pagbasa sa Mababang Kapulungan na mag-aatas sa lahat ng magsisipagtapos sa elementarya, high school at kolehiyo na magtanim ng hindi bababa sa 10 puno bilang prerequisite bago mag-graduate.
Iniakda ang House Bill 8728 or the “Graduation Legacy for the Environment Act” nina Reps. Gary Alejano (Party-list, MAGDALO) at Strike Revilla (2nd District, Cavite).
“It is the policy of the State to pursue programs and projects that promote environmental protection, biodiversity, climate change mitigation, poverty reduction, and food security. To this end, the educational system shall be a locus for propagating ethical and sustainable use of natural resources among the young to ensure the cultivation of a socially-responsible and conscious citizenry,” nakasaad sa pumasang panukalang batas.
Ang mga itatanim na puno ng graduating students ang magsisilbi nilang living legacy sa kalikasan at sa mga darating pang henerasyon.
“With over 12 million students graduating from elementary and nearly five million students graduating from high school and almost 500,000 graduating from college each year, this initiative, if properly implemented, will ensure that at least 175 million new trees would be planted each year. In the course of one generation, no less than 525 billion can be planted under this initiative,” ani Alejano.
“Even with a survival rate of only 10 percent, this would mean an additional 525 million trees would be available for the youth to enjoy, when they assume the mantle of leadership in the future,” dagdag pa niya.
“With the continued rise in urbanization, our ecology is suffering in the sense that trees are being cut to give way for various infrastructure projects,” paliwanag naman ni Revilla.
Kasama sa mga ahensyang magpapatupad ang Department of Education (DepEd), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Department of Environmental and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) at National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP).
