By Tara Yap

Furniture shops in the Western Visayas have been warned of utilizing illegal lumber.
The Regional Anti-Illegal Logging Task Force-Region VI (RAILTF-6), spearheaded by Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Region VI (DENR-6), is pushing to penalize the management of furniture shops that use illegal lumber.
“This will serve as a form of deterrence and will warn the public it is a serious offense,” emphasized,” DENR-6 Regional Director Jim Sampulna.
RAILTF-6 is pursuing the strategy in order to curb timber poaching in Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, and Iloilo provinces.
Last year, DENR-6 confiscated more than 87,540.9 board feet of forest products, with a monetary value estimated around P1.4 million.
DENR-6 found, many times, the illegally cut trees ended up in furniture shops and were transformed into chairs, tables, and other materials.
RAILTF-6 is urging cooperation from local governments, which has jurisdiction as they have the authority to issue business licenses./WDJ