Tayabas City businesses, officials unite for river conservation

By Rowena T. Cruz Tayabas City Mayor Piwa Lim formalizes the Adopt-A-River Project by signing a memorandum of agreement alongside participa...

By Rowena T. Cruz

Tayabas City Mayor Piwa Lim formalizes the Adopt-A-River Project by signing a memorandum of agreement alongside participating business owners and barangay captains at the 7th River Summit. (Tayabas City CICRO)

TAYABAS CITY, Quezon – Responding directly to the need for enhanced waterway protection, Tayabas City officials and over 70 business leaders have joined forces to launch the Adopt-A-River Project. This new partnership was formalized with the signing of a memorandum of agreement at the 7th River Summit, an event organized by the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) and held recently at the Casa Comunidad.

The project aims to transform the city's approach to conservation by establishing a new framework for public-private partnerships. It also served to inform participants about their specific roles in environmental preservation, with a focus on Tayabas’s river systems, which are recognized as a vital component of the local ecosystem.



Mykel Dapdapig, representing the Department of Environment and Natural Resources - Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB), served as a resource speaker. He provided an overview of effective activity planning and the implementation of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. The DENR-EMB is the government agency mandated to enforce environmental laws.

During the workshop portion of the event, representatives from each business establishment presented their planned activities. These included specific proposals for tree planting and river clean-up drives, to be conducted in collaboration with local barangay officials. Such activities are scientifically proven to mitigate soil erosion and reduce water pollution.

Mayor Piwa Lim underscored the importance of collaborative action for environmental protection, referencing the life-giving role of rivers and urging a unified approach to their preservation. The Lim administration has identified environmental sustainability as a key pillar of its governance.

Representing the Provincial Government's ENRO, EnP John Francis Luzano formally expressed support for the activities organized by Tayabas CENRO. This endorsement ensures that the local project will receive additional resources and expertise from the provincial level.

Culminating the summit was a covenant signing, led by Mayor Lim. Business owners executed the agreement to formalize their commitment to and support for the city's environmental programs. The signed covenant serves to establish accountability and secure long-term participation from all stakeholders involved in the project.