Collecting wildlife plants illegal, DENR reminds ‘plantitas’

 

MANILA – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources-National Capital Region (DENR-NCR) reminded “plantitos and plantitas” that collection of wildlife, whether animals or even plants, is illegal and is punishable by law.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, the DENR-NCR said this is stated under Section 27 of Republic Act 9147, otherwise known as the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act of 2001.

The agency stated in its post that while they promote urban gardening and greening in the cities, there may be people or individuals who are unaware that such law exists, thus the reminder.

“Nais naming paalalahanan ang lahat na ang pagkolekta o pagkuha ng buhay-ilang (wildlife), halaman man o hayop, mula sa kanilang natural habitat ay ipinagbabawal (we want to remind everyone that collecting or harvesting of wildlife, may it be plants (flora) or animals (fauna) from its natural habitat is not allowed by law),” the post reads.

The DENR-NCR urged the public to report to proper authorities if they know anyone or any group who may be involved in such illegal acts.

“Maaring makulong ng hanggang apat na taon at pagmultahin ng hanggang PHP300,000 ang mga mapapatunayang iligal na nangongolekta ng halaman mula sa kabundukan at kagubatan (anyone who will be caught and proven to be violating this law may be jailed for up to four years and fined for up to PHP300,000 for collecting plants from the mountains or the forests),” the agency said.

Because of the pandemic, most parts of the country were placed under community quarantine.

Businesses and work were grounded to a halt and people were encouraged to stay at home to control the spread of Covid-19 virus.

People have resorted to different hobbies and rediscovered love for plants, which led to the labels “plantitos” and “plantitas”.