Pursuant to Executive Order No. 26 issued on 24 February 2011, pertaining to the implementation of the National Greening Program (NGP), the following guidelines for the Mines Sector are hereby promulgated for the compliance of all concerned:

Section 1. Objectives. This Order shall have the following objectives:

1. To ensure the establishment of 34,000 hectares of reforestation areas outside of and within Mining Contract/Permit Areas, within three (3) years (2011-2013); and
   
2. To provide an orderly and clear plan for the implementation of NGP for the Mines Sector.

Section 2. Coverage. This Order shall cover all Mining Contractors/Permittees/Permit Holders/Lessees.

Section 3. Implementation Plan. The NGP shall be implemented by the Mining Contractors/Permittees/Permit Holders/Lessees through their respective Mine Environmental Protection and Enhancement Office or Environmental Office/Department and shall be assisted by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) Regional Office (RO) concerned.

To attain the 34,000-hectare reforestation target of the Mines Sector within three (3) years, a Mining Contractor/Permittee/Permit Holder/Lessee can implement any of the following options:

1. Establishment of reforestation area through the planting of seedlings including its maintenance and protection; and/or
   
2. Donation of seedlings to other participants of the NGP;

Section 4. Registration in the NGP-Mines Sector. All Mining Contractors/Permittees/Permit Holders/Lessees shall comply with the following registration procedure to the NGP-Mines Sector:

1. Filing of Application for Registration by the Mining Contractor/Permittee/Permit Holder/ Lessee in the NGP-Mines Sector at the MGB RO concerned, using the prescribed form in Annex A^[*] , together with the following requirements:
   
   

   a. For establishment of Reforestation Area
   

   
   
   1. Computation of the area for NGP using the prescribed formula shown in Annex B-1^[*] ;
      
   2. Clearance/written consent, whichever is applicable, from any of the following:
      
      

      a)  Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) or other concerned government agencies (for public lands without tenure instrument);
      b)  Tenure instrument holder/s; or
      c)  Private land owner/s.

      
      
   3. Location Map indicating the proposed reforestation area with geographic coordinates.

   
   b. For Donation of Seedling
   

   
   
   1. Computation of the number of seedlings to be donated using the prescribed formula shown in Annex B-2; and
      
   2. Memorandum of Agreement between the Mining Contractor/Permittee/Permit Holder/Lessee and seedling beneficiary/ies, with the Location Map of the Area to be planted by the seedling beneficiary/ies.

   
   
2. Evaluation of the Application for Registration by the MGB RO concerned within fifteen (15) days after receipt.
   
   
3. Approval of the Application for registration in the NGP-Mines Sector by the regional director concerned.

Section 5. Maintenance and Protection. The Mining Contractor/Permittee/Permit Holder/Lessee or seedling beneficiary/ies shall maintain and protect the planted seedlings within three (3) years to ensure high survival rate.

Section 6. Monitoring and Evaluation. The Contractor/Permittee/Permit Holder/ Lessee or seedling beneficiary/ies shall closely monitor and evaluate, on a quarterly basis, the condition of the planted seedlings during the first three (3) years. On the fourth (4^th ) year and onwards, it shall be done on a semi-annual basis.

Section 7. Reporting System. The NGP-Mines Sector shall adopt the reporting system of the Mining Forest Program as shown on Annex C^[*] . The report shall be submitted quarterly to the MGB RO concerned, which shall endorse the same to the MGB Central Office for the development of a centralized database and timely submission of a consolidated report to the NGP-DENR.

Section 8. Repealing and Amending Clause. This Memorandum Order supersedes Memorandum Order No. 2011-03.

Section 9. Effectivity. This Order shall take effect immediately upon publication.

Adopted: 27 March 2012

(SGD.) LEO L. JASARENO
Acting Director

---

^[*] Text Available at Office of the National Administrative Register, U.P. Law Complex, Diliman, Quezon City.