DCCD Engineering Carbon Offset by Planting First Forest in Sierra Madres

25 June 2022, Laguna Quezon Land Grant, Siniloan, Laguna. 153 enthused DCCD Engineering EcoWarriors trekked through the wet mud and sudden early morning showers to reach the site of their first forest in the Sierra Madre mountain range on this semi-cloudy and cool Saturday. By the time they reached their site, 40 minutes into a leisurely and slightly challenging, slippery walk up the mountain of Barangay Magsaysay, the rains and clouds had cleared to allow everyone to plant part of their 500 native Philippine forest tree “Living Legacy”, facilitated by a team of 14 forest guardians based at the Laguna Quezon Land Grant managed by FEED’s first and longest institutional partner, the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB).

It was early March 2022 when DCCD Engineering inquired about the possibility of bringing around 150 staff from different divisions to plant, many of whom would be planting for the first time in their lives, and others who had not been out since pre-Covid19 pandemic lockdowns of early 2021.

So it was with huge relief that DCCD participants arrived in tact, as early as 7am on the 25fh of June, which would otherwise have been a normal Saturday spent with family or friends relaxing. Instead, they started with some power stretching led by FEED’s VP Operations, Diane Penales; and proceeded to trek through the dense forest on dense, slippery, clay/loamy rich red soil in sneakers and boots, braving the semi-challenging conditions to reach their planting site. In the end, participants agreed was well worth planting the 500 native Philippine forest trees, as the experience provided a chance for them to reconvene with Nature (after 2 years of lockdown), restore a sense of well-being and purpose, as well as comic relief – what with all the selfies, slips and leaches or blood donations.

After completing the 500 tree-planting, we trekked back to base camp to enjoy a scrumptious native “binalot” (banana leaf-wrapped) adobo and rice meal, prepared by the local community, and recapped the morning’s events leading to the awarding of DCCD’s Certificate of Participation in having contributed to the Philippines carbon-offset targets (70% emissions reduction by 2030).

Thank you DCCD EcoWarriors who enabled community-based reforestation to take place!

May the Forest be with you!

Photo Collage, DCCD Engineering Reforestation, Sierra Madres, 18 June 2022

 

GPS Coordinates of DCCD Planting Site

Use any GPS (Global Positioning System) software / applications to input the latitude and longitude coordinates to be able to remotely see the location of your trees planted. Some examples include:

On Carbon Sequestration – How Much CO2 can our trees absorb?

Trees are often referred to as the “lungs of the Earth” as they are able to store carbon and produce oxygen, which is essential to many life forms. Trees also stabilise soil and reduce air temperature and humidity, whilst also reducing flooding and improving water quality. Without trees, most fauna and flora would not survive, what more humans?

It is widely accepted that a typical tree can absorb around 22 kilograms of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year when in fully grown status, meaning that saplings, seedlings and younger trees – whether mangroves or primary or secondary forest trees – absorb around half, so conservatively say 11 kgs per year (also widely used by most international forestry agencies around the world).

So, over a lifetime of a tropical tree (100 years), one tree can absorb around 1 tonne of CO2. Although this figure seems large, it should be measured in perspective: to date we humans generate around 40 billions tonnes of CO2 each year on Earth. Which means, that we need to plant 40 billion trees annually to offset these emissions.

Even if we could, though, land availability for agriculture and farming, including livestock production – one of the largest, increasing land conversion threats worldwide aside from urbanisation – would be significantly reduced. Which then translates into water and food security challenges, among others, but not limited to e.g.: urbanization and lack of city spaces leads to housing and commercial developments in critical watersheds, thereby threatening our fresh water supply and declining forest cover; or agricultural pollution threatening crops and livestocks, affecting poultry, dairy, pork and beef food production systems, and so on and so forth.

If we estimate the carbon sequestration of DCCD’s 500 upland native Philippine trees, they have the potential to offset* 500 tonnes of CO2 in these trees’ lifetime.

*A CARBON OFFSET IS A REDUCTION OR REMOVAL OF EMISSIONS OF CARBON DIOXIDE OR OTHER GREENHOUSE GASES MADE IN ORDER TO COMPENSATE FOR EMISSIONS MADE ELSEWHERE. OFFSETS ARE MEASURED IN TONNES OF CARBON DIOXIDE-EQUIVALENT. ONE TON OF CARBON OFFSET REPRESENTS THE REDUCTION OR REMOVAL OF ONE TON OF CARBON DIOXIDE OR ITS EQUIVALENT IN OTHER GREENHOUSE GASES. (WIKIPEDIA, 2022)

About DCCD Engineering Corporation

DCCD was formed in 1957 to address the demand for a comprehensive package of engineering services. Over time, DCCD has maintained its leadership position in the engineering consultancy business and is the first engineering consulting firm in the country that has been awarded an ISO 9001 Certification. This certification proves the following for DCCD: it has a Quality Management System that meets ISO 9001 standards, it continuously maintains its Quality System, it safeguards its policy statements by employing the latest technology and upgrading the skills of its people, it highly motivates its staff, and it is committed to continuous improvement and change. In 2012, we received the certificates of ISO 14001:2004 (Environmental Management System) and OHSAS 18001:2007 (Occupational Health and Safety Management System) for an Integrated QEHSMS Certification, which is again a first for a Filipino engineering consultancy company.

DCCD values its human resource which constitutes its greatest asset. This commitment is translated through having staff members highly qualified and motivated to act as responsive members of a coordinated team. For the 1st quarter of year 2017, DCCD’s manpower complement averaged 417 personnel, of whom about 80% are professional staff and senior experts and engineers rendering technical expertise in broad engineering fields here and abroad and 20% are technical support staff. Committed to address all the demands of a given project, DCCD utilizes outside expertise through commissioning of local as well as expatriate consultants through associated companies. Moreover, as may be demanded by the nature and scope of the tasks, as in the case of highly specialized and complex projects, DCCD may enter into collaboration with local and foreign firms. Its market domain is not limited to the Philippines. In consonance with the long-term objective of going beyond the domestic market, DCCD has undertaken projects offshore. DCCD expects that its continued involvement in the overseas market will boost further its already considerable experience in the traditional and non-traditional fields of engineering consultancy.

For more info on DCCD, visit: https://www.dccd.com/

NATURE IS SPEAKING (Narrated by Julia Roberts)

What can I do to stop climate change?

“As the world warms, extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and intense, sea levels are rising, prolonged droughts are putting pressure on food crops, and many animal and plant species are being driven to extinction. It’s hard to imagine what we as individuals can do to resolve a problem of this scale and severity.

The good news: We are not alone. People, communities, cities, businesses, schools, faith groups and other organizations are taking action. We’re fighting like our lives depend on it — because they do.

In a world of more than seven billion people, each of us is a drop in the bucket. But with enough drops, we can fill any bucket.” –  David Suzuki

Check out some of the ways you can take more climate change action.

For example, Climate Action groups are the local solution to a global crisis. Right now people just like you are coming together to develop practical, local solutions and make their towns and cities more climate-friendly. Are you ready to join them? Find out what’s happening near you.

More here: https://friendsoftheearth.uk/climate-change/what-can-I-do-to-stop-climate-change

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Contact FEED

In 2015, the Philippine government submitted to the United Nations the country’s commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The country committed to reduce its carbon emissions by 70 percent by 2030. The carbon dioxide reductions will come from the sectors of energy, transport, waste, forestry and industry.  Join us!  Help us reverse the Earth’s “hothouse climate” tipping point.

Tree-Planting with FEED

Contact us at FEED for more details, to join our regular activities or to design your own tree-nurturing event: info@feed.org.ph or call/text +63 (0)917 552 4722.

© Fostering Education & Environment for Development, Inc.