Article 25p. 25

NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS STATUTES and IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS

change:

Provided,

further,

That

no

additional

or

adjustment in annual allowable cut shall be made until

after such a review has been made. (Amending P.D. No.

705

(Revised

Forestry

Code

of

the

Philippines),

Presidential Decree No. 1559, [June 11, 1978])

Section 27. Duration of license agreement or license to

harvest timber in forest lands. The duration of the

privilege to harvest timber in any particular forest land

under a license agreement or license shall be fixed and

determined in accordance with the annual allowable cut

therein, the established cutting cycle thereof, the yield

capacity of harvestable timber, and the capacity of

healthy residuals for a second growth.

The privilege shall automatically terminate, even before

the expiration of the license agreement of license, the

moment the harvestable timber have been utilized

without

leaving

any

logged-over

area

capable

of

commercial utilization.

The maximum period of any privilege to harvest timber

is twenty-five (25) years, renewable for a period, not

exceeding twenty-five (25) years, necessary to utilize all

the

remaining

commercial

quantity

or

harvestable

timber either from the unlogged or logged-over area.

It shall be a condition for the continued privilege to

harvest timber under any license or license agreement

that the licensee shall reforest all the areas which shall

be determined by the Bureau.

Section 28. Size of forest concessions. Forest lands shall

not be held in perpetuity.

The size of the forest lands which may be the subject of

timber utilization shall be limited to that which a person

may effectively utilize and develop for a period of fifty

(50)

years,

considering

the

cutting

cycle,

the

past

performance of the applicant and his capacity not only

to utilize but, more importantly, to protect and manage

the whole area, and the requirements of processing

plants existing or to be installed in the region.

Forest

concessions

which had been the subject of

consolidations shall be reviewed and re-evaluated for the

effective implementation of protection, reforestation and

management

thereof

under

the

multiple

use

and

sustained yield concepts, and for the processing locally

of the timber resources therefrom.

B. WOOD-PROCESSING

Section

29.

Incentives

to

the

wood

industry.

The

Department

Head,

in

collaboration

with

other

government

agencies

and

the

wood

industry

associations and other private entities in the country,

shall

evolve

incentives for the establishment of an

integrated wood industry in designated wood industry

centers and/or economic area.

The

President

of

the

Philippines,

upon

the

recommendations

of

the

National

Economic

Development Authority and the Department Head, may

establish

wood

industry

import-export

centers

in

selected locations: Provided, That logs imported for such

centers shall be subject to such precaution as may be

imposed by the Bureau, in collaboration with proper

government agencies, to prevent the introduction of

pests, insects and/or diseases detrimental to the forests.

Section

30.

Rationalization

of

the

wood

or

forest

products

industry.

—

While

the

expansion

and

integration

of

existing

wood

or

forest

products

processing plants, as well as the establishment of new

processing plants shall be encouraged, their locations

and operations shall be regulated in order to rationalize

the whole industry.

No expansion or integration of existing processing plant

nor establishment of new processing plant shall be

allowed unless environmental considerations are taken

into account and adequate raw material supply on a

sustained-yield basis is assured.

A long-term assurance of raw material source from

forest

concessions

and/or

from

industrial

tree

plantations,

tree

farms

or

agro-forest

farms

whose

annual allowable cut and/or whose harvest is deemed

sufficient to meet the requirement of such processing

plant shall govern, among others, the grant of the

privilege

to

establish,

install

additional

capacity

or

operate a processing plant.

Henceforth within one year from the date of this law, as

a condition to exercise of the privileges granted them

under a license agreement, license, lease or permit,

wood

or

forest

products

processors

without

forest

concessions

or

areas

that

may

be

developed

into

industrial tree plantations, tree farms or agro-forest

farms

and

licensees,

lessees

or

permittees without

processing plants shall jointly adopt any feasible scheme

or schemes, other than log supply contract, for the

approval of the Department Head: Provided, That no

license agreement, license, lease or permit, including

processing plant permit, shall be granted or renewed

unless said scheme or schemes are submitted to, and

approved by, the Department Head.

All processing plants existing, to be expanded, to be

integrated or to be established shall obtain operating

permits, licenses and/or approval from the Bureau or the

Department, as the case may be, and shall submit

themselves

to

other

regulations

related

to

their

operation.

The Department Head may cancel, suspend, or phaseout

all inefficient, wasteful, uneconomical or perennially

short in raw material wood or forest products processing

plants which are not responsive to the rationalization

program of the government. (Amending P.D. No. 705

(Revised Forestry Code of the Philippines), Presidential

Decree No. 1559, [June 11, 1978])

Section

31. Wood wastes, weed trees and residues.

Timber licensees shall be encouraged and assisted to

gather and save the wood wastes and weed trees in their

concessions, and those with processing plants, the wood

residues thereof, for utilization and conversion into wood

by-products and derivatives.

Section 32. Log production and processing. — Unless

otherwise

directed

by

the

President,

upon

recommendation of the Department Head, the entire

production

of

logs

by

all

timber

licensees

shall,

beginning January 1, 1976 be processed locally: Provided,

That the following conditions must be complied with by

those who apply be allowed to export a portion of their

log production to be determined by the Department

Head such that the total log export of these timber

licensees shall not exceed twenty-five percent (25%) of

the total national allowable cut:

1) Timber licensees with existing viable processing plants

or

2)

Timber

licensees

with

processing

projects

duly

approved by the Department Head or

"3)

Timber

licensees

who

have

acquired

viable

processing machinery and equipment which will be

installed and will become operational in accordance

with the schedule approved by the Department Head;

and

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