PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 705 REVISING PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 389, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE FORESTRY REFORM CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES WHEREAS, proper classification, management and utilization of the lands of the public domain to maximize their productivity to meet the demands of our increasing population is urgently needed; WHEREAS, to achieve the above purpose, it is necessary to reassess the multiple uses of forest lands and resources before allowing any utilization thereof to optimize the benefits that can be derived therefrom; WHEREAS, it is also imperative to place emphasis not only on the utilization thereof but more so on the protection, rehabilitation and development of forest lands, in order to ensure the continuity of their productive condition; WHEREAS, the present laws and regulations governing forest lands are not responsive enough to support re-oriented government programs, projects and efforts on the proper classification and delimitation of the lands of the public domain, and the management, utilization, protection, rehabilitation, and development of forest lands; NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers in me vested by the Constitution, do hereby revise Presidential Decree No. 389 to read as follows: SECTION 1. Title of this Code. — This decree shall be known as the "Revised Forestry Code of the Philippines." SECTION 2. Policies. — The State hereby adopts the following policies: a) The multiple uses of forest lands shall be oriented to the development and progress requirements of the country, the advancement of science and technology, and the public welfare; b) Land classification and survey shall be systematized and hastened; c) The establishment of wood-processing plants shall be encouraged and rationalized; and d) The protection, development and rehabilitation of forest lands shall be emphasized so as to ensure their continuity in productive condition. SECTION 3. Definitions. — a) Public forest is the mass of lands of the public domain which has not been the subject of the present system of classification for the determination of which lands are needed for forest purposes and which are not. b) Permanent forest or forest reserves refers to those lands of the public domain which have been the subject of the present system of classification and declared as not needed for forest purposes. c) Alienable and disposable lands refer to those lands of the public domain which have been the subject of the present system of classification and declared as not needed for forest purposes. d) Forest lands include the public forest, the permanent forest or forest reserves, and forest reservations. e) Grazing land refers to that portion of the public domain which has been set aside, in view of the suitability of its topography and vegetation, for the raising of livestock. f) Mineral lands refer to those lands of the public domain which have been classified as such by the Secretary of Natural Resources in accordance with prescribed and approved criteria, guidelines and procedure. g) Forest reservations refer to forest lands which have been reserved by the President of the Philippines for any specific purpose or purposes. h) National park refers to a forest land reservation essentially of primitive or wilderness character which has been withdrawn from settlement or occupancy and set aside as such exclusively to preserve the scenery, the natural and historic objects and the wild animals or plants therein, and to provide enjoyment of these features in such a manner as will leave them unimpaired for future generations. i) Game refuge or bird sanctuary refers to a forest land designated for the protection of game animals, birds and fish and closed to hunting and fishing in order that the excess population may flow and restock surrounding areas. j) Marine parks refers to any off-shore area inhabited by rare and unique species of marine flora and fauna. k) Seashore park refers to any public shore area delimited for outdoor recreation, sports fishing, water skiing and related healthful activities. l) Watershed reservation is a forest land reservation established to protect or improve the conditions of the water yield thereof or reduce sedimentation. m) Watershed is a land area drained by a stream or fixed body of water and its tributaries having a common outlet for surface run-off. n) Critical watershed is a drainage area of a river system supporting existing and proposed hydro-electric power and irrigation works needing immediate rehabilitation as it is being subjected to a fast denudation causing accelerated erosion and destructive floods. It is closed from logging until it is fully rehabilitated. o) Mangrove is a term applied to the type of forest occurring on tidal flat along the sea coast, extending along streams where the water is brackish. p) Kaingin is a portion of the forest land, whether occupied or not, which is subjected to shifting and/or permanent slash-and-burn cultivation having little or no provision to prevent soil erosion. q) Forest product means timber, pulpwood, firewood, bark, tree top, resin, gum, wood, oil, honey, beeswax, nipa, rattan, or other forest growth such as grass, shrub, and flowering plant, the associated water, fish, game, scenic, historical, recreational and geologic resources in forest lands. r) Dipterocarp forest is a forest dominated by trees of the dipterocarp species, such as red lauan, tengile, tiaong, white lauan, almon, bagtikan and mayapis of the Philippine mahogany group, apitong and the yakals. s) Pine forest is a forest composed of the Benguet Pine in the Mountain Provinces or the Mindoro pine in Mindoro and Zambales provinces. t) Industrial tree plantation is any tract of forest land purposely and extensively planted to timber crops primarily to supply the raw material requirements of existing or proposed processing plants and related industries. u) Tree farm refers to any tract of forest land purposely and extensively planted to trees of economic value for their fruits, flowers, leaves, barks, or extractives, but not for the wood thereof. v) Multiple-use is the harmonized utilization of the numerous beneficial uses of the land, soil, water, wildlife, recreation value, grass and timber of forest lands. w) Selective logging means the systematic removal of the mature, over-mature and defective trees in such manner as to leave adequate number and volume of healthy residual trees of the desired species necessary to assure a future crop of timber, and forest cover for the protection and conservation of soil and water. x) Seed tree system is partial clearcutting with seed trees left to regenerate the area. y) Healthy residual is a sound or slightly injured tree of the commercial species left after logging. z) Sustained-yield management implies continuous or periodic production of forest products in a working unit with the aid of achieving at the earliest practicable time an approximate balance between growth and harvest or use. This is generally applied to the commercial timber resources and is also applicable to the water, grass, wildlife, and other renewable resources of the forest. aa) Processing plant is any mechanical set-up, machine or combination of machine used for the processing of logs and other forest raw materials into lumber, veneer, plywood, wallboard, block-board, paper board, pulp, paper or other finished wood products. bb) Lease is a privilege granted by the State to a person to occupy and possess, in consideration of a specified rental, any forest land of the public domain in order to undertake any authorized activity therein. cc) License is a privilege granted by the State to a person to utilize forest resources as in any forest land, without any right of occupation and possession over the same, to the exclusion of others, or establish and operate a wood-processing plant, or conduct any activity involving the utilization of any forest resources. dd) License agreement is a privilege granted by the State to a person to utilize forest resources within any forest land with the right of possession and occupation thereof to the exclusion of others, except the government, but with the corresponding obligation to develop, protect and rehabilitate the same in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in said agreement. ee) Permit is a short-term privilege or authority granted by the State to a person to utilize any limited forest resources or undertake a limited activity with any forest land without any right of occupation and possession therein. ff) Annual allowable cut is the volume of materials, whether of wood or other forest products, that is authorized to be cut regularly from a forest. gg) Cutting cycle is the number of years between major harvests in the same working unit and/or region, within a rotation. hh) Ecosystem means the ecological community considered together with non-living factors and its environment as a unit. ii) Silviculture is the establishment, development reproduction and care of forest trees. jj) Rationalization is the organization of a business or industry using scientific business management principles and simplified procedures to obtain greater efficiency of operation. kk) Forest officer means any official or employee of the Bureau who, by the nature of his appointment or the functions of the position to which he is appointed, is delegated by law or by competent authority to execute, implement or enforce the provisions of this Code, other related laws, as well as their implementing regulations. ll) Primitive tribe is a group of endemic tribe living primitively as a distinct portion of a people from a common ancestor. mm) Private right means or refers to titled rights of ownership under existing laws, and in the case of primitive tribes, to rights of possession existing at the time a license is granted under this Code, which possession may include places of abode and worship, burial grounds, and old clearings, but excludes production forest inclusive of logged-over areas, commercial forests and established plantations of forest trees and trees of economic value. nn) Person includes natural as well as juridical person.
Posted on: Sat, 15 Jun 2013 04:09:41 +0000