A CALL FOR ENVIRONMENTAL UNITY

THE CLIMATE CRISIS IS REAL AND WE NEED TO ACT NOW!

Super typhoon Rolly (Goni) and then Ulysses (Vamco) gave us another scenario to mourn and grieve, just like Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) years ago. Lessons were learned but there were no visible actions and/or no concrete resolutions were taken. The same catastrophe will come to pass, but we never surrender. Thank God, we are Filipinos.

This natural disaster cause lost many devastated livelihoods, destroyed shelters, and taken many lives time and again. It is nature’s many fearsome ways for us to be awakened. We are awake but we just silently stare and took no actions at all.

Our country is facing massive pollutions, deforestation, illegal mining & logging, coastal erosion, and dynamite fishing. La Nina and El Nino are worse than we expected. The whole ecosystem is collapsing. Not only humans but also wildlife is suffering and dying. It is very alarming but many continue to look away and take these dilemmas for granted, it is the sad reality.

Neither any political party nor even a single environmental organization can avert these terrible natural phenomenal situations until we completely recognize that climate change and global warming are critical predicaments worldwide. Only acceptance and unity can carry us from these dreadful circumstances.

It’s a pressing time to draw together, collectively discuss, plan and work what we can to save and protect our environment. Failure is not yet to come to gather and keep what is left and to recreate what we had lost. Taking positive actions today is saving the generations of tomorrow.

Let us protect and sustain our environment, it’s now or never.

KALIKASAN MUNA, NGAYON NA!

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WHAT ARE THE ACTIONS THAT WE CAN UNDERTAKE TO ADDRESS THE CLIMATE CRISIS AND PROMOTE RESILIENCY?

Actions speak louder than words, that is why we would like to advocate and propose for the following response:

1. Reforestation to cool the temperature and absorve more carbon dioxide as well as serve as natural protection;
2. Design of strong and typhoon-resilient houses which can withstand strong winds;
3. Prohibition of residences within 500m of seashore high tide;
4. Food security;
5. Removal of housing from low-lying areas to avoid floods;
6. Removal of housing from steep slopes to avoid landslide casualties, and reforestration in those areas;
7. Agricultural terracing to minimize topsoil erosion (the rice terraces are thousands of years old);
8. Permeable pavements in urban areas to percolate surface water to aquifers;
9. Zoning urban areas to provide PPOS (Parks & Public Open Spaces);
10. Urban renewal & rehab of slum areas “in situ”;
11. Define & protect easements (RROW, utilities, water bodies);
12. Protected SLF for SWM;
13. Armoring of urban rivers, esteros, drainage systems;
14. Proper and sustainable modernization of jeepney and buses (public transport) geared towards reduce vehicle pollution. This includes non-renewal of “old” vehicles unless engines are w/in Euro-4 standards;
15. Phase-out of coal-fueled power plants and other plants using coal, such as cement plants;
16. Phase out of coal mines;
17. Phase-out of open-pit mines, and closing down of all large-scale mining such as Tampakan.