The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has urged the public to take an active role in the rehabilitation and conservation of the country’s mangrove forests by helping validate on the ground the mangrove map created through satellite data.

The National Mangrove Map 2023, the satellite-derived map developed by the DENR and the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA), will serve as the basis for making informed decisions and developing policies aimed at restoring and protecting Philippine mangroves.

Mangroves are productive salt-tolerant ecosystems that play a critical role in coastal protection, carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation, poverty alleviation, and food security. They face a decline and are continually threatened due to human activities and natural disturbances.

Citing the need “to measure what we treasure” through the power of citizen science, DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga called for a collaborative effort and urged everyone to take an active role in the mangrove initiative and the safeguarding of the country’s ecosystems.

 “Amid the climate emergency and destruction of mangroves, everyone has the ability to make a difference by tracking and protecting our natural resources,” she said.