The Office of the City Environment and Natural Resources (OCENR) here has urged the public to help the government conserve the wetlands in their communities.

Engr. Reynaldo Gonzales, OCENR chief, underscored Thursday the importance of conserving the wetlands to achieve the country’s sustainable development goals by 2030.

Gonzales emphasized that “wetlands are indispensable for the countless benefits or ecosystem services that they provide humanity, ranging from freshwater supply, food and building materials and biodiversity to flood control, groundwater recharge, and climate change mitigation.”

Gonzales and Mayor John Dalipe led the planting of 2,500 mangrove propagules Thursday at the coastal zone in Sitio Logoy Diutay, Barangay Talon-Talon, in observance of World Wetlands Day.

Various agencies, private organizations, non-government organizations, and the education sector joined the campaign.

“Let us continue to protect and do activities for the betterment of the environment,” Dalipe said.

Anchored on the theme “It’s time for wetland restoration,” the activity highlighted the urgent need to prioritize wetlands restoration and calls on all generations to take steps to revive and restore degraded wetlands.

World Wetlands Day is celebrated every February 2 to mark the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands in Ramsar, Iran in 1971.

Also on Thursday, the mayor deployed personnel of the City Engineer’s Office to conduct cleanup and dredging activities at the San Roque River where accumulated garbage and debris restrict water flow and flood the city’s airport runway during heavy downpours.

The river dredging activity intends to prevent damage to property and disruption of airport operations. (PNA)