Twenty-eight Saraviahanon couples recently planted 1,000 mangrove seedlings at the Tomongtong Mangrove Eco-Trail in EB Magalona, Negros Occidental, as a requirement for their Valentine’s Day mass wedding.
The mass wedding will be officiated by Mayor Marvin Malacon at the EB Magalona Public Plaza on February 14.
Shortly before the mangrove-planting, the couples attended an orientation on waste segregation at home and on the importance of mangroves in coastal protection, conducted by Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Officer Jojo Vargas.
The pre-wedding activities were spearheaded by the Local Civil Registrar’s Office (LCRO), headed by Mercedes Recla, and the Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office (MENRO), a press release from EB Magalona said.
This is now the 9th year that Valentine Mass Wedding couples are required to join the mangrove-planting before their wedding, Vargas said.
By joining these activities, the couples express their shared commitment and responsibility to protecting the environment, he said.
Joining them in the mangrove-planting were personnel of the LCRO and MENRO.*