The provincial government of Cotabato is backing the proposed declaration of the Ligawasan Marsh as a protected area.

In yesterday’s 65^th regular session of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, Chair of the Committee on Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources, Hon. Vicente C. Sorupia proposed a resolution supporting the proposal to declare the marsh within the territorial jurisdiction of the Cotabato Province as a protected area under the National Integrated Protected Area System (NIPAS) pursuant to Republic Act No. 7586..

The Ligawasan Marsh is considered to be Mindanao’s largest swamp and marsh area and one of the Philippines’ largest with an area of 288,000 hectares comprising 3 marshes: the Ligawasan Proper, the Libungan and Ebpanan situated in the provinces of Maguindanao, Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat.

In 1998, the National Economic and Development Agency Region XII formulated the Ligawasan Marsh Development Master Plan which recommended the inclusion of Ligawasan as a protected area but there were no enough scientific bases presented at that time to support such recommendation.

With the support of the Global Environmental Facility (GEF)-World Bank/United Nations Development Programme, the government in 2001 has undertaken the Protected Area Sustainability Assessment Study and the Wetland Biodiversity Component for Ligawasan Marsh Study in 2004 which gathered the required scientific information and completed the required stakeholder consultations at national, provincial, municipal, barangay and sitio levels.  Studies reveal that there was a strong consensus among the stakeholders that Ligawasan Marsh should be proclaimed as a protected area under the NIPAS Act.

SP Proposed Resolution 323-2011 was unanimously approved yesterday confirming Cotabato Province’s commitment in supporting the said campaign and help in the conservation and preservation of the biodiversity and natural resources of the Ligawasan Marsh.  //ozg/idcd-pgo//