First Gen to help transform Batangas dumpsite into a wildlife shelter

Lopez-led First Gen Corp. is pitching in efforts to convert a closed garbage dumpsite into a recreation park and wildlife rescue center in Batangas City.

The listed firm recently signed an agreement with the Batangas City local government to participate in the latter’s Eco-Park and Wildlife Rescue Center Project.

For this initiative, First Gen will serve as a “partner adoptor.” It will donate construction materials for the site’s walkway and it will also plant hundreds of tree-growing endemic hardwood saplings.These undertakings, it said, would be maintained in a park area to be called “First Gen Regenerative Projects,” showcasing its various programs to enhance the environment.

“Other First Gen commitments for the eco-park are being finalized,” First Gen said in a statement.

The Eco-Park Project entails rehabilitating and transforming the 2-hectare dumpsite into a recreational area for residents and tourists as well as a sanctuary for rescued animals.

Featured facilitiesIt will feature facilities such as a bike trail, a skateboard park, picnic areas, an amphitheater and souvenir and gift shop and amenities including restrooms and a parking area.

It will also house various facilities for animals such as an aviary, serpentarium, turtle pond, fish pond, monkey trail and animal care center and wildlife hospital.

First Gen said this latest activity is in line with its parent firm First Philippine Holdings (FPH) Corp.’s advocacy of forging collaborative pathways for a decarbonized and regenerative future alongside its fight against climate change.

FPH vowed in 2016 it won’t build, develop or invest in any power plant that runs on coal, a fossil fuel with intensive carbon dioxide content that when released into the atmosphere contributes significantly to climate change.

First Gen operates hydro, geothermal, solar, wind and natural gas plants with a total capacity of 3,492 megawatts.

—Jordeene B, Lagare