TACLOBAN CITY — Stakeholders have pledged to protect the environment and biodiversity of the Samar Island Natural Park (SINP) amid the ongoing construction of a vital road that will traverse the protected area.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Eastern Visayas, together with the provincial governments of Samar and Eastern Samar, the local government units of Basey, Samar and Maydolong, Eastern Samar, and other stakeholders, signed a memorandum of agreement (MoA) to ensure the protection and conservation of the SINP during the construction of the Basey-Maydolong Road.

The 70-kilometer Basey-Maydolong Road, which will directly connect the provinces of Samar and Eastern Samar, is in its final phase of construction and is expected to be completed before the end of the Marcos administration.

The road is considered a vital infrastructure project in Eastern Visayas as it will cut travel time between Tacloban City and Borongan City to about two hours, down from the current four-hour journey via the existing 190-kilometer route through Marabut, Samar.

Calls for the project’s immediate completion have intensified due to the limitations of the existing route, where two bridges are currently undergoing repairs and are subject to load restrictions.

DENR Eastern Visayas regional executive director Arturo Salazar said the agreement underscores the stakeholders’ shared commitment to safeguarding the SINP while pursuing much-needed infrastructure development.