The history of the Department goes back as far as 1863 when by virtue of a Spanish Royal Decree an office known as Inspeccion General de Montes was created in the Philippines. Although that agency focused on forest administration in its generic terms as dictated by the limited scope of services then required, nevertheless its functions and responsibilities included several concerns related to the management of a wide range of natural resources, such as forest inventory and protection, land classification, watershed protection, water, biodiversity and mineral resources conservation. As provided for under Section 4 of E.O. 192, the DENR is mandated to be the primary government agency responsible for the conservation, management, development and proper use of the country’s environment and natural resources, including those in reservations, watershed areas and lands of the public domain, as well as the licensing and regulation of all natural resources utilization as may be provided by law in order to ensure equitable sharing of the benefits derived therefrom for the welfare of the present and future generations of Filipinos. PENRO OIC: Ricardo Lazaro Jr.; CENRO PILAR: Ricardo Alarcon; CENRO BAGAC: Amado Villanueva