THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and French nature-based project developer aDryada signed an agreement on Tuesday to restore 120,000 hectares of rainforest in Samar.
Founded in 2021, aDryada develops, operates and finances large-scale nature-based projects — including reforestation, land restoration, mangroves and wetlands — around the world. Its current portfolio includes projects in the Congo Basin of Gabon, the mangroves of Southeast Asia and the biological corridors of Brazil.
Its Philippine undertaking, the Green Samar Project which has been under feasibility study for the past two years, will regenerate the rainforest in the Samar Island Natural Park — the largest terrestrial protected area in the Philippines and a candidate Unesco World Heritage Site.
The park is among the country’s most significant, old-growth rainforest reserves and is home to the critically rare Philippine eagle.
Rehabilitation will be done through direct planting, enrichment planting and assisted natural regeneration.
The DENR said the project will also strengthen park surveillance through increased equipment and ranger capaciAty, with a carbon credit mechanism to fund conservation beyond the project’s crediting period.
The project is expected to benefit over 20,000 people through job creation, social infrastructure, improved agricultural practices and a benefit-sharing mechanism.
It is also poised to become the country’s first large-scale carbon and ecosystem restoration project within a protected area under the current regulatory framework.
Environment Secretary Juan Miguel Cuna called Green Samar “a pioneering model for nature restoration in protected areas,” adding that its success could open doors for similar initiatives nationwide.
He said the Philippines’ natural assets and restoration potential present a unique opportunity to draw investment supporting sustainable development and biodiversity conservation.
The agreement has an initial term of 25 years, with an option to extend for another 25 years.
