Sustainable Structures

(Editor’s note: This article has been updated as of September 14, 2021) Rubber farmers in Naga, Zamboanga Sibugay have a more aesthetic and profitable use for their senile, unproductive rubberwood trees, thanks to the DOST-Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI). Through the project “Processing and Utilization of Senile and Unproductive Rubberwood (Hevea brasiliensis) Trees …

Rubber farmers in Zamboanga Sibugay see more lucrative use for retired trees Read More »

The Department of Science and Technology-Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI) distributed on July 6 10 hands-free bamboo-abaca disinfectant dispensers and foot baths to several establishments and government offices in Los Baños, Laguna. The bamboo dispenser releases alcohol when the connected foot bath is stepped on, while the abaca acts as a sponge that …

Tall grass helps in fight vs Covid, as alcohol dispensers and foot baths made from bamboo are distributed Read More »

UK-based Online Mortgage Advisor (onlinemortgageadvisor.co.uk) has recently published research comparing the average prices of one square meter of an apartment in the city center of Manila, Philippines, to the average annual salary in 2016 and 2020. That research shows Manila to be the second least affordable city to buy property in Asia, worse than property …

Manila among Asia’s least affordable cities for buying, renting property Read More »

Here’s some good news you can literally drink to. Quality yet affordable wine barrels for aging fruit wines may soon be available in the market, and yes, these barrels are made from common tropical fruit trees such as santol and Indian mango. The Department of Science and Technology’s Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI) …

PH wines to age better in sustainable barrels made from ‘santol’ and Indian mango Read More »

The search for alternatives to wood for handicraft, furniture, and construction industries is intensifying, thanks largely to the dawning realization that wood products are quickly becoming depleted as the world’s forested areas inevitably give way to human development. The remaining naturally forested areas and timber lands, at least in the Philippines, have become protected by …

Bamboo: The worthy alternative to rapidly disappearing wood Read More »

LUCBAN, Quezon – To meet the high demand for quality planting materials of the wood-based industry, ensuring the supply of our forest tree resources is a must. To achieve this, the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic, and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD) funded a project in support …

Forest trees are becoming endangered, too; here’s what our scientists are doing to help Read More »

The August 17 to 19 mayhem at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport due to the runway excursion of a Xiamen Air jet was an eye-opener of sorts, and has prompted the Senate and the House to launch separate inquiries into the readiness of the country’s airports to cope with potential disasters. One such natural disaster …

If one ditched plane could wreak havoc on NAIA, then how much more ‘the big one’? Read More »

The US pet industry is estimated to grow to $72.13 billion in 2018 from $69.51 billion in 2017. With that number also comes the increased amount of trash that each discarded pet toy or pet food packaging that ends up in landfills, if not in the oceans. This, and the hefty price tag of a …

This river nuisance can make your animal companions ‘feel more at home’ Read More »

  BISLIG, Surigao del Sur–The Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD) recently held an inception meeting for two newly approved projects under PCAARRD’s Industry Strategic S&T Program (ISP) on Industrial Tree Plantation (ITP). Forester Conrado B. Marquez of the Forest and Timber …

PH’s rapidly growing construction industry needs fast-growing trees; DOST fast-tracks studies Read More »