EDITORIAL - Mobilize the Earth

As the temperature soared yesterday, the nation joined the rest of the world in marking the 42nd anniversary of Earth Day. The focus of Earth Day 2012 resonates particularly in Mindanao, which is suffering from an acute power shortage that could last two more years. Earth Day 2012 calls on governments to quickly implement measures to improve energy efficiency and make it universally accessible. Shifting to renewable energy technology will also help ensure a sustainable future for the planet.

For the Philippines, as in several other countries, saving the planet has taken on urgency. In recent years, thousands of lives have been lost and billions of pesos worth of crops, property and infrastructure destroyed as a result of natural catastrophes, many of them made worse by climate change.

The Philippines has always served as a welcome mat for typhoons and is regularly visited by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. But in recent years, the force of the natural calamities has been aggravated by abuse and neglect of the environment. Only last December, the cities of Iligan and Cagayan de Oro and several other areas in Mindanao were devastated when tropical storm “Sendong” struck.

Sendong itself was not unusually strong, but its rains unleashed mud from denuded mountains and sent illegally cut logs crashing into communities as the muddy flood rampaged downstream toward the sea, leaving over a thousand people dead or missing.

Over in Metro Manila, climate change was seen as a culprit, combined with a high tide, in a storm surge that emanated from Manila Bay. The storm surge left Roxas Boulevard under three feet of water, destroyed the seawall and damaged bayfront properties.

Saving the planet can be complicated. Biofuel production has endangered certain species. Certain types of green technology can be too expensive for poor countries and can retard economic development. Banning plastic bags means a spike in consumption of paper bags, with the paper sourced from trees. Some of the most environment-conscious countries are also home to vast herds of cattle, which are major sources of greenhouse gases.

Still, greater awareness of the need to protect the environment can only be good for the planet. The awareness must be supported by solid measures, implemented by governments with the cooperation of all sectors. The best time to start saving the planet is now.