DENR chief lauds PWRCC efforts in saving crocodiles ‘despite man’

SECRETARY Maria Antonia Yulo-loyzaga on Thursday acknowledged the efforts of the partners of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in protecting and conserving the country’s endangered species.

Speaking during the 29th Crocodile Week at the Palawan Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Center (PWRCC) in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan recently, the DENR chief underscored the importance of protecting and conserving the country’s two species of crocodiles, the endemic Crocodylus mindorensis, a freshwater crocodile and Crocodylus Porosus, a saltwater crocodile which is being raised in several Denr-accredited crocodile farms in the Philippines.

“As we reflect on the journey of Crocodile Week over the past 29 years, and as we actually toured the center, it struck me how, while we feel we have made big strides in crocodile conservation and research, these creatures are actually inextricably linked despite man. We have been only celebrating, well, now the 29th Crocodile Conservation Week, but they have been on this earth for millions of years. So, they survived despite what humanity has caused in their environment,”yulo-loyzaga said.

Yulo-loyzaga said man is the “wildest” of all species because “only man has the power to alter our landscape, alter our seascape, threaten species, and make our own survival the primary purpose of our existence rather than the preservation of the environment that we actually inherited from our ancestors.”

The crocodile, the DENR chief said, survived despite what humanity has caused in their environment.

“As a critically endangered species, the conservation of the Philippine crocodile is important to local communities in terms of both cultural and economic value, assess the potential to support livelihoods related to the ecological tourism that is actually present today,” the DENR chief said.

She noted that initially the Crocodile Farming Institute, now known as the PWRCC, in partnership with Japan, through JICA, made conservation of crocodiles possible.

She said the crocodile farm and the conservation effort in Palawan is one of the most significant milestones in the history of crocodile conservation for man, not only for Palawan and the Philippines but also for the world.