Gov’t environmental policies cited during Earth Day celebration

MANILA, Philippines - The Aquino administration’s groundbreaking environmental policies have made headway to cushion the impacts of climate change, improve disaster mitigation, preserve the remaining forests and biodiversity, and secure the country’s food supply.

Environment Secretary Ramon Paje made this assessment as the country joins the rest of the world in celebrating Earth Day today under the local theme, “Earth Day Everyday, Everywhere, for Everyone.”

“The first three years of the Aquino administration was highlighted by strong environmental governance with focus on reversing environmental degradation and enabling sustainable living,” he said.

Paje cited in particular President Aquino’s total log ban and reforestation policies which are initiatives that pushed the ranking of the Philippines up in the Environmental Performance Index (EPI) last year.

He said that through the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the administration will pursue programs to preserve the country’s environmental gains and further protect the environment.

He announced that the government will even continue to give emphasis on “balancing economic and social development with environmental protection.”

Paje said the implementation by the DENR of the log ban in natural forests pursuant to Executive Order No. 23 had substantially reduced to 31 the illegal logging hotspots from a high of 197 before the law took effect.

The order, signed by President Aquino in February 2011, has also halted all authorized logging operations in natural forests nationwide, virtually stopping timber extraction of about 300 million board feet a year.

Also in February 2011 the President issued EO 26 establishing the National Greening Program, which seeks to plant 1.5 billion trees covering 1.5 million hectares in six years ending in 2016.

These two presidential directives each received a perfect score of 100 percent in the EPI, improving the Philippine ranking by eight notches to No. 42 in 2012 from No. 50 in 2010 among the 132 countries evaluated by four respected international institutions.

The Philippines outranked countries like South Korea (43rd), Australia (48th), the United States (49th), Singapore (52nd) and Israel (61st).

EPI is an evaluation of the sustainability of the environmental programs and policies of the countries concerned. The evaluation was made by Yale University, Columbia University, the World Economic Forum and the Joint Research Center of the European Commission.

Paje bared that the DENR has also distributed to local government units (LGUs), down to the 42,000 barangays nationwide, close to 70,000 copies of the geohazard maps with a scale of 1:50,000 to help LGUs mitigate the effects of flashfloods and landslides.

The geohazard maps prepared by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau would help LGUs pinpoint barangays in their areas of jurisdiction that are prone to landslides and floods.

The Aquino government’s mining policy reforms under E0 79, which seeks to balance development and environmental protection, ban mining in prime agricultural and fishing areas as well as in 78 designated ecotourism sites, including almost the whole province of Palawan.

The same also disallows the issuance of new mining permits until Congress passes a measure increasing the royalty tax imposed on the gross earnings of mining companies to five percent from the current two percent.

Paje said the presidential directive also calls for a thorough review of existing mining operations to ensure compliance with mining and environmental laws. It likewise underscores the need for national laws and local ordinances to be harmonized to ensure the proper management and regulation of the lucrative industry.

Host city

Meanwhile, the Quezon City government is hosting this year’s Earth Day celebration at the Quezon City Memorial Circle.

The whole-day activity will begin with the “Lakad Para sa Kalikasan,” a 2.5-kilometer walk around the memorial park, and an ecumenical service to be officiated by representatives from major religious organizations.

The highlight of the event is the “State of the Philippine Environment Address,” which will be delivered by DENR Undersecretary Demetrio Ignacio. This will be followed by a response from civil society, represented by Roberto Guevarra, country director of Earth Day Network Philippines Inc. (EDNPI).

– With Christina Mendez