Xi DIY Farming

25/08/2026

18/08/2026

FOREST UNDER PERMITS🌳

More than 218,000 trees in Palawan are reportedly covered by permits allowing tree cutting or earth-balling for mining-related projects.

The Environmental Legal Assistance Center (ELAC) and Save Palawan Movement raised concerns after documenting at least 218,854 trees covered by Special Tree Cutting and Earth-Balling Permits.

The figure was based on publicly posted permit information from mining companies operating in the province.

Of the total, 60,359 trees are in Brooke’s Point and linked to Ipilan Nickel Corporation, 87,090 are in Bataraza and linked to Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation, and 71,405 are in Aborlan and linked to Berong Nickel Corporation. The Bataraza figure includes more than 52,000 trees associated with the Mt. Bulanjao area.

Not all of the 218,854 trees are meant to be cut. Some are covered by earth-balling permits, which allow trees or saplings to be removed with soil around their roots and transplanted elsewhere.

For the Berong Nickel Project alone, DENR said 26,617 trees were authorized for cutting, while another 43,743 saplings were approved for earth-balling and transplantation. The agency said the work would be done in phases, with replacement planting carried out alongside each phase.

DENR said tree removal for development projects is subject to legal requirements, environmental safeguards, and rehabilitation measures.

For Berong, the agency requires 100 indigenous seedlings to be planted for every tree authorized for cutting. That amounts to at least 2.66 million replacement seedlings, which must be maintained for at least three years.

Environmental, church, and civil society groups have questioned the scale of the permits and called for greater transparency, including the release of permit details, tree inventories, maps, and related approvals. The Save Palawan Movement has also called for a legislative investigation into mining-linked tree-cutting permits and applications in the province.

Puerto Princesa Bishop Socrates Mesiona later raised similar concerns over the permits covering 218,854 trees, particularly their possible impact on areas important to Palawan’s biodiversity and watersheds.

The issue has renewed scrutiny of how mining activities are being carried out alongside efforts to protect Palawan’s forests, watersheds, and biodiversity.

16/08/2026

OKRA VS. MICROPLASTICS? 🌱💧

A familiar vegetable may have an unexpected role in fighting water pollution.

A 2025 peer-reviewed study published in ACS Omega found that natural polymers extracted from okra removed around 80% of microplastics from ocean-water samples tested by researchers.

The process takes advantage of the sticky polysaccharides naturally found in okra. These plant-based polymers attach to microplastic particles, causing them to clump together and sink, making them easier to separate from the water.

Researchers prepared the material by soaking sliced okra pods in water overnight, extracting the dissolved polymers and drying them into powder. The treatment was then tested on microplastic-contaminated water collected from different sources.

Results varied depending on the type of water. Okra performed best in ocean water at around 80% removal, while fenugreek achieved around 89% in groundwater and an equal mixture of okra and fenugreek removed approximately 77% from freshwater.

The plant-derived polymers also performed better than commercially available polyacrylamide in laboratory testing. The researchers identified okra and fenugreek extracts as potential biodegradable and nontoxic alternatives for removing contaminants during water treatment.

From a common vegetable to a potential tool against microplastic pollution, okra shows how nature-based materials could contribute to cleaner water technologies. 🌱🌊

16/08/2026

We often talk about Sierra Madre as a mountain range.

But for millions of Filipinos, it is a source of water, food, livelihood, biodiversity, and carbon storage. It also holds mineral resources, including nickel, copper, gold, and chromite, making the range both an ecological lifeline and a site of mining activity.

16/08/2026

Plastic waste can worsen urban flooding when litter is carried by wind and rain into drains, canals, rivers, and waterways. During storms, these channels can become “plastic superhighways,” moving waste through cities while clogged drains and accumulated debris slow stormwater and cause streets and neighborhoods to flood.

The countries contributing the most ocean plastic are not always the biggest plastic producers. Pollution is often shaped by heavy rainfall, dense river systems, rapid urbanization, long coastlines, and weaknesses in waste collection. In countries such as the Philippines, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand, plastic entering urban waterways can contribute to drainage blockages before eventually being carried downstream toward the ocean.

The Philippines, estimated to account for about 35% of ocean plastic leakage, highlights how closely these problems can be connected. The same plastic that blocks a city drain today can enter a river tomorrow and eventually reach the sea.

Improving waste collection, keeping drainage systems clear, reducing plastic waste, and preventing trash from reaching waterways can therefore help address both urban flooding and ocean plastic pollution.

15/08/2026

: From simply wanting something productive to do during the pandemic, John Neil Oreiro discovered both a business opportunity and a source of stress relief in farming. What began in 2020 as a small hobby with a few pigs has since grown into a diversified venture that now includes egg-laying and goat raising on his one-hectare property in Narra, Bacnotan, La Union.

Read more in the comments.

15/08/2026

: While other teenagers spend their free time playing mobile games, watching Netflix, or eating out with friends, 17-year-old John Alexis “Didong” Quilapio prefers to sit quietly on their living room couch, his hands moving with calm precision. In front of him are not gadgets or game consoles, but strips of dried pandan leaves, which he turns into sambalilo hats, a traditional handicraft he has mastered over the years.

Read more in thecomments.

13/08/2026

13/08/2026

Nine-Year-Old Cebuana Raises ₱20,000 to Help Protect Critically Endangered Cebu Flowerpecker in Cebu

🐦 A YOUNG CEBUANA TURNS CONCERN INTO CONSERVATION

At just nine years old, Samantha Gail Lim has already helped raise ₱20,000 for conservation efforts protecting the critically endangered Cebu Flowerpecker (Dicaeum quadricolor), one of Cebu’s rarest endemic birds. The Philippine Biodiversity Conservation Foundation Inc. (PBCFI) recognized her efforts in August 2026.

Gail’s conservation journey began when she was seven, after learning about the Cebu Flowerpecker while researching endangered birds. Concerned that such a rare species existed on the same island where she lived, she told her father, Sheldon Lim, that she wanted to do something rather than simply learn about its decline.

Her parents later brought her to Nug-as Forest in Alcoy, southern Cebu, where she met members of KMYLBNA, the community organization whose forest wardens patrol, plant trees and help protect one of the bird’s remaining habitats. Although Gail did not see the elusive flowerpecker during that visit, she encountered another Cebu endemic, the Black Shama or Siloy, strengthening her interest in local wildlife conservation.

Her advocacy eventually grew into Project Wings and Wonders, an initiative under the Cebu Leo Club in collaboration with PBCFI. Through art workshops, conservation education and custom merchandise, Gail and her partners helped introduce more children and families to Cebu’s endemic wildlife.

The effort ultimately raised ₱20,000, which Gail donated in full to the Nug-as Forest Wardens of KMYLBNA. PBCFI said the contribution will support the community protectors safeguarding the Cebu Flowerpecker’s habitat in Alcoy.

The Cebu Flowerpecker was once believed extinct before being rediscovered in 1992. Conservation assessments identify remaining populations in forests including Nug-as in Alcoy, Babayungan in Dalaguete and central Cebu, with only about 1,000 hectares of suitable forest habitat estimated to remain.

At seven, Gail asked what she could do. At nine, her answer is already directly supporting the people working to keep one of Cebu’s most threatened species from disappearing.