By Anjo Perez
The La Mesa Dam Nature Reserve
In the outskirts of the metropolis lies a very scenic place where one can commune with nature, learn nature conservation, have a dose of fresh air and even get an adrenaline rush by going through the trails carefully laid out inside 2,700 hectares of forested area. That place is called the La Mesa Nature Reserve, which can be found in the fringes of Quezon City.
Located just 12 kilometers from the Quezon City Memorial Circle is the La Mesa Nature Reserve. It is actually a part of the La Mesa EcoPark, but it is where gardening processes of seedlings are prepared for use in the entire La Mesa Watershed.
Unlike the EcoPark, the Nature Reserve does not have any permanent structures in the area except for a steel watchtower – used by the forest rangers in spotting forest fires – and a small concrete outhouse for the guests. The visitors’ center, the nurseries and even the staff house are all made of timber with straw as roofing material.
The Nature Reserve is managed by Bantay Kalikasan which is the environmental arm of the ABS-CBN Foundation Inc. They are responsible for the reforestation, management and protection of La Mesa’s 2,700 hectare watershed which is the source of water for over 12 million people in Metro Manila. La Mesa gets most of its water from the Umiray, Angat, and Ipo watersheds.
In 1999, the management and protection of La Mesa was given to Bantay Kalikasan after the 2,000 illegal settlers who occupied wide tracts of land within the area left it in such a devastated state. Back then, only 500 hectares of forests remained and the water was almost filthy as it was tested to contain high traces of coliform bacteria.
With the help of the Quezon City government, the illegal residents where resettled to other areas putting a stop to the wanton destruction of the watershed brought about by hillside clearings, slash and burn activities and timber poaching. By 2001, when most of the illegal settlers were gone, the Bantay Kalikasan, through the help of donors, started its reforestation program — and in just nine years, have successfully reforested 1,400 hectares of the 1,500 hectares of denuded forest area.
After the successful rehabilitation of the La Mesa watershed, Bantay Kalikasan is now working on sustaining their program by offering nature appreciation activities and tours for a small fee.
Bantay Kalikasan offers nature appreciation tours for families where visitors walk through a long trail and road network inside the forest with in-house foresters giving the visitors a briefing about the dynamics of the forest. This tour brings visitors inside the forest with treks lasting for two hours.
An educational tour is also offered to schools. Foresters brief the students about the global, regional, national and local environmental conditions. They are then led through the forest and are taught the inter-connectivity of the various ecosystems such as grassland, forest and river ecosystems.
In the nursery activity, visitors are taught the preparation of seedlings for planting at the La Mesa watershed. Aside from being taught how to properly plant trees, visitors are also briefed on the advantages of organic farming as well as the process of producing nutrient-rich natural fertilizers trough vermiculture.
Bantay Kalikasan’s most prominent attraction however is the mountain bike trail. There are 12 loops available for trekkers and bikers alike with loops as short as 1.9 kilometers to trails as long as 35 kilometers.
Five highly trained Foresters are available seven days a week and can handle tour groups of any size. Two in-house agriculturists are on hand for nursery tours and 10 trail masters are always on stand by to guide visitors inside the forests.
All of the Bantay Kalikasan staff are well-trained in providing first aid to visitors with an emergency vehicle always on stand-by at the visitors’ center prepared for any eventuality.
A fee of P200 is collected from every person who visits the nature reserve. They are open all-year-round but everyone is required to make a reservation before they visit. Bantay Kalikasan can be reached at 938-2540.
