Taking stock of bamboo resources in three key productions areas and implications for the Philippine bamboo industry

Professorial Chair Lecture

UPLB Centennial Professorial Chair Lecture

Place

Via online (Zoom meeting platform)

Date

6-9-2021

Abstract

This lecture paper deals with the inventory of bamboo resources and how it could lead to creating a more conducive business environment for the Philippine bamboo industry. It is concerned with the sustainability of bamboo resources to meet the anticipated demand for bamboo poles for traditional and emerging uses and industries based on bamboo. Determining how much bamboo is available for manufacturing bamboo products is critical to justify investments. The gap in information pertaining to available bamboo resources can be doom efforts in creating a more investment-friendly environment, if manufacturers cannot be ascertained of a sustainable supply of bamboo materials to feed their factories. This paper fills the need for a system that will yield an accurate and up-to-date information about the availability of bamboo in various parts of the country. It describes efforts to develop a system of bamboo inventory based on trials in three selected key bamboo production areas, namely, Pangasinan, Iloilo, and Bukidnon [Philippines] provinces. The development of a community-based inventory system, which entailed the initial preparation of community maps that showed the physical availability of bamboo in the key production areas, is described. The maps were digitized and validated in the field. Community partners were trained on inventory methods and on the proper identification several bamboo species. The final outputs were GIS-based distribution maps and a database for bamboo resources in the key production areas. Overall, a total coverage of 20,336 has of land planted with bamboo was projected, along with 2,655,332 harvestable bamboo culms from the three provinces. Nomenclatural ambiguity of bamboo, i.e., differences in names depending on location, were also addressed. A draft policy instrument was also formulated, for possible presentation to key stakeholders for validation and adoption.

College

College of Forestry and Natural Resources (CFNR)

Language

English

Pages/Collation

101 leaves

En – AGROVOC descriptors

BAMBOOS; INVENTORIES; GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS; DATABASES; DATA PROCESSING

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