Si Karen. Si Lawin at si Fe

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivD26qyNdzmv-Q1XB6n56hVpvri1GToMRReXS0nYCM0Dn4TQl4qmeQMY_uxh71Uo7-VF2k3IKKRP2Fi0CU8U5Y_5zpYSaP_vMOZMKbRH1aLC6D0NxtPjBT6GRBya4AwuMvvbDnhSw36hZq/s1600/Lawin+Damage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivD26qyNdzmv-Q1XB6n56hVpvri1GToMRReXS0nYCM0Dn4TQl4qmeQMY_uxh71Uo7-VF2k3IKKRP2Fi0CU8U5Y_5zpYSaP_vMOZMKbRH1aLC6D0NxtPjBT6GRBya4AwuMvvbDnhSw36hZq/s400/Lawin+Damage.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">House of a widow</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">By now, many would have seen the devastations caused by the two typhoons Karen and Lawin. To many, the perception is that what is typical. A region destroyed by a natural disaster. This country is one of the most disaster prone countries in the world. An average of 20 storms and typhoons visit it annually. Not to be cavalier about it but we are a people used to calamities and disasters. And what is remarkable is that we seem to get up after every disaster. This is regardless of how many casualties, the homes destroyed and the crops lost. Others would say that we do not learn our lessons. That we are stupid as a people for letting such misfortune visit us year in and year out. That we have a government that perennially fails to help its people and does not “build better” after every disaster.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0a_og8BTOzTHltqghWLoAMOqgJ61W-XHLbi5Z4kNGD9-m2-EKs5-fxuSJr7bzdBdHO5y5K2Qsn_WEjr_Rj-1-7WmboI6d_oGn4B9uQwkLed5hUvZ7Td6RuitSmNjaDx0Pdn7UAtL5CVZm/s1600/Lawin+Damage2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0a_og8BTOzTHltqghWLoAMOqgJ61W-XHLbi5Z4kNGD9-m2-EKs5-fxuSJr7bzdBdHO5y5K2Qsn_WEjr_Rj-1-7WmboI6d_oGn4B9uQwkLed5hUvZ7Td6RuitSmNjaDx0Pdn7UAtL5CVZm/s400/Lawin+Damage2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Farmlands and ricefields</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">I pose an anthropological answer. As compared to the Dutch who built dikes to protect their country from the ever rising tides that beset their lands that is below sea level. The Filipinos never behaved and much less plan as such. One only has to look at the North Atlantic. The skies are always grey, the waves high and menacing, the water so cold and the winds freezing. Their shores have no fine white sand. Maybe that is why they always come here.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUk0WWbTQPoKqzbXZ23DkxM1ZAOD5wFuWMIk5CGbysHSsbrJNEZI4paC70i96yfFw67FaKeJAusv6Wwjl_FVfypWdeKoOL5FhyphenhyphenaIzggWEL3w1dK2IkZSr3ofBXlmN1OngaIOM3Zwnsz2gS/s1600/Lawin+Damage4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUk0WWbTQPoKqzbXZ23DkxM1ZAOD5wFuWMIk5CGbysHSsbrJNEZI4paC70i96yfFw67FaKeJAusv6Wwjl_FVfypWdeKoOL5FhyphenhyphenaIzggWEL3w1dK2IkZSr3ofBXlmN1OngaIOM3Zwnsz2gS/s400/Lawin+Damage4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">In the Philippines, typhoons and storms are vicious. There are high winds enough to uproot the Acacia (not an indigenous species) but not enough to uproot the coconut tree. After every storm, the sun will come out full and bright, the waves will be gentle and the sand will remain white and powdery. It is the collective experience of a people so used to such vagaries of fate and climate that they will just carry on. The government officials elected came from such racial stock and institutional memory. The Filipino will always know that the sun will shine after every storm. That is what makes the Filipino resilient.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Such resiliency is put to the test now. Owing to the economic and social history in contemporary (relatively) times, failure of all governments and administrations to address the economic needs of a growing population destroyed the socio-economic equilibrium of the country. Failure to industrialize meant that no work for the burgeoning population both in the urban centers and the rural areas. Such industrialization is what spelled the difference between developed and undeveloped countries. Now we have a large population that needed work.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">The typhoons devastated regions that are dependent on agriculture. We are an agricultural country with 60% of the population residing in the rural areas. That is why, those who are experiencing poverty accounts for 60% of the number. But there are dynamics, since the Filipino is resilient even in poverty, a considerable number of farmers were able to send their children to school and a great number of them, unable to find employment went to work overseas.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">This is where things are intertwined. Those who went abroad try to support their families left behind. But that is getting ahead of the story. The agricultural sector remains bound by unequal distribution of wealth. The Comprehensive Land Reform Program dating back to 1988 failed to address the main problems of the agricultural sector. A greater number of farmers remain tenants and that is supported by statistics of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR). The CARP was subjected to what my mother would say Philippine Problems (they had that subject with Mrs. Pagulayan in their HS class in the 1950s). There is the “Palakasan” system for beneficiaries of the CARP with the Municipal Land Reform Office, the Mayor and the Governor and maybe even connections to Satan himself. Tghus, they remained in a state that is like an eternal quagmire. </span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Fe is an OFW. Her father is still a farmer so as her brothers. Her educational attainment precludes her from being in the “skilled” category of OFWs. Thus, her skills are typically classified as “Semi-Skilled”.  But she braved the challenges of going abroad and sought to serve her family as best she could. Subject to indignities by foreign employers she persevered. Managing to send money, send gifts and packages home and send emergency remittances owing to the exigencies required. What is remarkable is that she is able to generate savings for her. Fe knows that she cannot be an OFW forever and wants to secure her future.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">With the savings generated, she would invest in palay farming, buy land and even invest in hog raising. But the land where that her grandfather tilled and currently tilled by her father never belonged to them. CARP never reached them. She would plow her hard earned Php100,000 to 4 hectares of ricefield with a projected profit of Php20,000. Fe thought she can have enough income for her savings and for her father. This has happened so many times before and Fe and her neighbors never got any aid or assistance from the government. They can only drool at the assistance and aid given to the victims of Yolanda. Fe wondered how come in the case of Yolanda, aid kept coming in for one month. Now, it is zero and Fe had to work harder for her family and community. </span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlpUIfkgSJRJcu__u2D1jioxtzdVErwwn2-4B121SS2w9iRR1A2GTxBpJV71HGka7m83KEA3Fz8yKZWaNG25KUH_9A_zaQE6QX99RTLSoClurzsYasoNcq-g4XteN_4fl38doDtbEYlt51/s1600/Lawin+Damage6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlpUIfkgSJRJcu__u2D1jioxtzdVErwwn2-4B121SS2w9iRR1A2GTxBpJV71HGka7m83KEA3Fz8yKZWaNG25KUH_9A_zaQE6QX99RTLSoClurzsYasoNcq-g4XteN_4fl38doDtbEYlt51/s400/Lawin+Damage6.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <br /></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Karen and Lawin came. The ricefields were devastated. She not only lost her savings, investments and projected income but have to shell out money so that their kitchen roof be repaired. She was told that electricity will be restored after 3 months and a generator be bought. Fe was lucky. Her neighbor who was a widow had their entire roof torn off by the typhoon. In that barangay, every family had at least one OFW. The social cost is just too much to bear.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">But the cost was not only to be measured in these terms. Such a system could not support the needs of the present and of the near future. </span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">This is a depiction on what the country and its people face. Kailangan bang ma-kuba ang mga tao ditto at yung mga nasa abroad? Yes the sun will shine tomorrow but having clouds of despair in the horizon is by now unacceptable.  </span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">It will take the goodwill of everybody in the country and all those who are abroad and even those who are not Filipinos to get us out of this morass. There will be more Karens and Lawins in the near future. </span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">The Center just cannot hold.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <br /></div> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID=%207781499933510803226&target=facebook" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0S0FvmVeOZsZsyHBRYXs6SOZJFhYBhuQl7OyKadUhy4moMHToFTEST_ch1O_s7SEAdn5dqXBJMznFjilw7Ml42IQSpvsFeEt2olcocpNz3nSnB67pdCgiyERJ8dQXDr_rMeDI_fG1ydc/s1600/sharefb185.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID=%207781499933510803226&target=twitter" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVWTbY-f69CzSsrK9okrvKibUin1YURVntTu2W1qH6so7vbU6RiR36tV5fVzui_gG4ArLMrsG3k4OvyDg33RZO134rMkgTJC0y_fHDi-Zxcf29jZSC3xcypmVNJ8EWhpyL9MiVhAa7vM/s1600/sharetw185.png" /></a></div>

Environment Events Op-Ed Socio-Economic Si Karen. Si Lawin at si Fe

House of a widow By now, many would have seen the devastations caused by the two typhoons Karen and Lawin. To many, the perception is t...

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Hottest of Biodiversity Hot Spots Found in the Philippines

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb3Qwur7ZiVp8mqxdRUMyYz6s_sGuw5cBu4TSZvHiLRi5kCO5tEK70UEkSWkF2F_OR2K78Sag8tHzwnr9fNPLAIwCckfJ84tdZeADDiy0F2ME751D1iblUrOCwkh1gaEhZ18vJv5qv3ls_/s1600/Coral+reef+Philippines_20090302112932.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb3Qwur7ZiVp8mqxdRUMyYz6s_sGuw5cBu4TSZvHiLRi5kCO5tEK70UEkSWkF2F_OR2K78Sag8tHzwnr9fNPLAIwCckfJ84tdZeADDiy0F2ME751D1iblUrOCwkh1gaEhZ18vJv5qv3ls_/s400/Coral+reef+Philippines_20090302112932.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Years of unmitigated and destructive human activities have plunged the Philippines in a biodiversity crisis that could take decades to reverse, environment officials said on Tuesday.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">The Philippines is one of the world's most biodiverse places, but its marine and wildlife riches are under threat because of intrusive manmade activities, according to Undersecretary Demetrio Ignacio of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">"The Philippines is one of the most threatened in the world. The rate of extinction of species is 1,000 times the natural rate because of manmade activities," Ignacio told the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Champions of Biodiversity awards.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">"It is a crisis. We are the hottest of the hot spots," he said.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Rodrigo Fuentes, executive director of the Asean Center for Biodiversity, said the entire Southeast Asia region was in danger of biodiversity loss.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Fuentes described it as a "silent" crisis. "You don't see it, but you feel it. We are in the midst of it."</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">"Habitat loss, unsustainable use of resources, climate change, invasive alien species and pollution have not been arrested and continue to negatively impact biodiversity," he said in a statement.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">These threats have contributed to the decline in the mangrove, coral reef, seagrass, forest, agro, peatland and freshwater ecosystems, Fuentes noted.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Reversing the trend</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Officials said it would be difficult to reverse the trend because it often took years to get ecosystems back in balance.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Moreover, people and governments only realize the loss of species and ecosystems when the crisis is there, making recovery harder and more expensive, Fuentes said.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Ignacio said the Philippines' main problem was the loss of habitats due to deforestation and coastal denigration.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">He cited as an example the recent discovery of black coral poaching in the seas of Mindanao, a part of the Coral Triangle where one of the world's richest marine resources can be found.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Coral reefs are considered to be "rainforests of the seas," providing food, nutrients and protection to many marine species.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">The loss of one species could have a domino effect on other creatures that depend directly and indirectly on it, the officials said.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Unmitigated logging</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">In the Philippines, deforestation is caused by unmitigated logging and urbanization. According to the DENR, the Philippines has 8 million hectares of denuded and idle forest lands. A recent study by Conservation International (CI) said only about 4 percent of the Philippines' forests remained as natural habitat for many endemic species.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Forest lands are being cleared to make way for food production and other activities to meet the needs of the country's rising population, now around 90 million, CI noted.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">According to the DENR, the country loses about 2 percent of its forests every year. The Philippine government is seeking to reverse the trend by planting 1.5 billion trees in six years.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Poor coastal management and unregulated fishing have contributed to the decline of water resources and coastal areas, the environmentalists said.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">The World Wide Fund for Nature recently said the Philippines used to have more than 27,000 square kilometers of healthy coral reefs.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">However, 50 years of destructive commercial and unregulated fishing have left less than 5 percent in excellent condition, with just 1 percent in pristine state.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Ignacio said the DENR could not quantify the country's biodiversity loss, noting that there had been no assessment of it. "It takes a huge amount of resources," he said.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Widespread destruction</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Mundita Lim, director of the Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau, said the destruction of Philippine coral reefs to get rare and valuable black corals appeared to be wider than initially reported. The area could be five times the size of Manila, she said.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Lim noted that it would take years for the reefs to recover their original health as corals are "slow growing" creatures. Black corals, for instance, grow only 2 millimeters a year. It could take 50-100 years for the black corals to grow to their adult size, Lim said.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">The waters off Mindanao are not the only part of the country that are under threat from marine poachers. The entire Philippine coasts and seas are their harvest grounds, Lim said.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Turtles, which are critically endangered, and sharks have been poached and sold illegally for their meat and fins in China and Taiwan where demand is high, she said.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">The Philippines has 36,289 kilometers of coastline and is considered to be the world's second-largest archipelago.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">But environment officials said they did not have enough manpower and resources to guard the country's coastline and seas.</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">Source: https://sg.news.yahoo.com/hottest-biodiversity-hot-spots-found-philippines-074002632.html</span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <br /></div> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID= 3562167127112778396&target=facebook" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0S0FvmVeOZsZsyHBRYXs6SOZJFhYBhuQl7OyKadUhy4moMHToFTEST_ch1O_s7SEAdn5dqXBJMznFjilw7Ml42IQSpvsFeEt2olcocpNz3nSnB67pdCgiyERJ8dQXDr_rMeDI_fG1ydc/s1600/sharefb185.png"></a> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID= 3562167127112778396&target=twitter" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVWTbY-f69CzSsrK9okrvKibUin1YURVntTu2W1qH6so7vbU6RiR36tV5fVzui_gG4ArLMrsG3k4OvyDg33RZO134rMkgTJC0y_fHDi-Zxcf29jZSC3xcypmVNJ8EWhpyL9MiVhAa7vM/s1600/sharetw185.png"></a></div>

Environment Hottest of Biodiversity Hot Spots Found in the Philippines

Years of unmitigated and destructive human activities have plunged the Philippines in a biodiversity crisis that could take decades to re...

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Semirara: Environmentally Compliant

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm5J5_-cgXH6LCluCz2etlDfNOfJup2hmxdRF38IkgYH_Ky_8GRx6H-yZ8wsjftSI_qoELmQHHMPdTYn9wiMH14XJobZa82W7PA7vX2U6M2iesmFVD_SVdYvyf6lfPCQLRuFoAj9Rfl7B_/s1600/Semirara.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm5J5_-cgXH6LCluCz2etlDfNOfJup2hmxdRF38IkgYH_Ky_8GRx6H-yZ8wsjftSI_qoELmQHHMPdTYn9wiMH14XJobZa82W7PA7vX2U6M2iesmFVD_SVdYvyf6lfPCQLRuFoAj9Rfl7B_/s400/Semirara.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"><u><b></b></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;"></span></div> <span style="font-size: large;">Semirara Mining and Power Corp. said Thursday its coal mine complies fully with environmental laws after Environment Secretary Gina Lopez singled it out for alleged violations.<br /><br />Lopez asked Semirara to explain why its environment compliance certificate (ECC) should not be revoked. The company said it had not received a copy of the order.<br /><br />Semirara shares were down 5.95 percent to P109 after Lopez's announcement.<br /><br />"But we would like to reiterate that Semirara Mining and Power Corporation has been fully complying with all relevant laws and regulations," the company said in a statement.<br /><br />"Our mining and environmental protocols also conform with the conditions of our ECCs. We hope that our company will be accorded due process throughout any pre- and formal audit process of the government," it added.</span><br /> <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify;"> <br /></div> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID= 5239669180510000372&target=facebook" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0S0FvmVeOZsZsyHBRYXs6SOZJFhYBhuQl7OyKadUhy4moMHToFTEST_ch1O_s7SEAdn5dqXBJMznFjilw7Ml42IQSpvsFeEt2olcocpNz3nSnB67pdCgiyERJ8dQXDr_rMeDI_fG1ydc/s1600/sharefb185.png"></a> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID= 5239669180510000372&target=twitter" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVWTbY-f69CzSsrK9okrvKibUin1YURVntTu2W1qH6so7vbU6RiR36tV5fVzui_gG4ArLMrsG3k4OvyDg33RZO134rMkgTJC0y_fHDi-Zxcf29jZSC3xcypmVNJ8EWhpyL9MiVhAa7vM/s1600/sharetw185.png"></a></div> <br />

Environment News Semirara: Environmentally Compliant

Semirara Mining and Power Corp. said Thursday its coal mine complies fully with environmental laws after Environment Secretary Gina Lo...

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Environmental Nightmare: The Curse of Sachets

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKA7vXfitluwzgJnmzQ7Nze5EN5aN9MX4OqlvK34y1OnBTPWE_TtioyVAJ_SMGywviq-wIqrH9K25TfZMOAhc7st57DPo45Crsk5MZzxLWFrbFYTkcTGhS0u8_3YSr6b94aRiYE9wTiKw5/s1600/Sachets.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKA7vXfitluwzgJnmzQ7Nze5EN5aN9MX4OqlvK34y1OnBTPWE_TtioyVAJ_SMGywviq-wIqrH9K25TfZMOAhc7st57DPo45Crsk5MZzxLWFrbFYTkcTGhS0u8_3YSr6b94aRiYE9wTiKw5/s400/Sachets.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">This writer remember sometime in 2001, there was a local government official, an engineer by profession who took pride in informing his constituents during the campaign that he invented the “sachet” that was being used by a large multinational company in packaging. His spiel consisted of telling the people, his discovery made products more affordable to the masses and that is why he is qualified to be the mayor. He told them that he invented it because he cared for the poor.<br /><br />Fast forward to September 29, 2009, at the height of the floods brought about by Tropical Storm Ondoy, news footages of the pumping stations being clogged by garbage filled the airwaves. The garbage ranged from sofas to plastic bags. But notable were tons of plastic sachets representing all the products of multinationals being sold at sari-sari stores and consumed by millions of people everyday. <br /><br />Rivers, streams and other tributaries also carry these trash all the way to the sea. During July 16, 2016, Zero Waste Europe’s beach cleanup at Freedom Island collected tons of used sachet containers. <br /><br />These non-biodegradable packagings literally covered the beach of Freedom Island and even if these were thrown from the sewers of Metro Manila, these were able to reach as far as Batangas Bay hundreds of kilometres from Manila Bay, carried by the currents.<br /><br />These severely affect the environment along these coastlines. They degrade marine life and eventually pollute the oceans of the world. This is not only happening in the Philippines but also throughout Asia. This has now reached alarming proportions since the populations of Asia are still growing and notably, the poorer segments of the population tend to buy such packets of these products every day.<br /><br />Zero Waste groups have already presented alternatives to these multinationals that are also affordable and recyclable. The response was a big “NO”.<br /><br />Given that cleaning up the environment will lead to a healthier population and even the practical result of clearing drainages and waterways, the production of such packaging continues.<br /><br />There must be an advocacy intensification with these multinational companies as the targets. Since these same products and sachets are also sold in the 1st World countries where these multinationals originate, it only means that it can also be done here in the Philippines.   <br /><br />Source: Readings from : https://www.zerowasteeurope.eu/2016/07/the-curse-of-sachets-in-asia-why-western-companies-should-be-held-accountable/</span></div> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID=%202935761155256738948&target=facebook" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0S0FvmVeOZsZsyHBRYXs6SOZJFhYBhuQl7OyKadUhy4moMHToFTEST_ch1O_s7SEAdn5dqXBJMznFjilw7Ml42IQSpvsFeEt2olcocpNz3nSnB67pdCgiyERJ8dQXDr_rMeDI_fG1ydc/s1600/sharefb185.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID=%202935761155256738948&target=twitter" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVWTbY-f69CzSsrK9okrvKibUin1YURVntTu2W1qH6so7vbU6RiR36tV5fVzui_gG4ArLMrsG3k4OvyDg33RZO134rMkgTJC0y_fHDi-Zxcf29jZSC3xcypmVNJ8EWhpyL9MiVhAa7vM/s1600/sharetw185.png" /></a></div> <br />

Environment Op-Ed Environmental Nightmare: The Curse of Sachets

This writer remember sometime in 2001, there was a local government official, an engineer by profession who took pride in informing his c...

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Lopez to order dismantling of Laguna Lake fish pens, revoking of big firm permits

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnGyDuBvk043_FhZUDkbBSMHHHLN6idqJfBFG4VeXljzTiX_zLXuuYQD-JD2YwWfoLYC5Q3lvgUKJWN1cH4xPM0rUXSzlpYJav5KAIyEhzxn1v5yyBjHBJGQP-XMZ8-E_yjU8prdA52mlE/s1600/Laguna.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnGyDuBvk043_FhZUDkbBSMHHHLN6idqJfBFG4VeXljzTiX_zLXuuYQD-JD2YwWfoLYC5Q3lvgUKJWN1cH4xPM0rUXSzlpYJav5KAIyEhzxn1v5yyBjHBJGQP-XMZ8-E_yjU8prdA52mlE/s400/Laguna.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <div style="text-align: justify;"> <span style="font-size: large;">In view of President Rodrigo Duterte's promise to prioritize poor fishermen in the use of the Laguna de Bay or Laguna Lake, Environment and Natural Resources Sec. Regina Lopez on Wednesday said she will issue a directive for the dismantling of big fish pens and revoke permits given to big corporations operating at the lake.<br /><br />The move is to develop and manage huge portions of the Laguna Lake to give out new entitlements, with farmers having the priority.<br /><br />"Itong Laguna Lake, naubos na nga... wala na ang (para sa mga maliliit na) fishermen. 'Yun na lang the difference between one big fishpen to the other... Makikita mo sa plane, every time I go to Davao and I pass by that place there, nakita ko talagang wala nang ano (para sa maliliit na mangingisda). And the fishermen are complaining about the loss. Talagang wala na sila. Kasi ang maliit na lugar, iyon lang ang kanila (Small fishermen making a living out of the Laguna Lake are left with very little area to ply their trade, with most areas allocated for private fish pens owned by big corporations. I can see it from the plane every time I go to Davao. Every time I can see that there’s really nothing left, and the fishermen are complaining about their loss, because they have very little left for them)," the President said in his first State-of-the-Nation Address (SONA) on Monday.<br /><br />"This is what I’m telling you, the poor fishermen will have priority in its entitlements," he stressed.<br /><br />As of June 30, 2016, there are 357 registered and unregistered fishpen owners operating at the Laguna de Bay, according to the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA).<br /><br />Former LLDA Chairman Edgardo Manda earlier said the entitlements currently held by big corporations may range from 50 to 1,000 hectares of the lake surface.<br /><br />He said some corporations now have big entitlements by merging those entitlements granted to their dummies.<br /><br />Manda noted that some 20 percent of the 90,000-hectare lake surface of the Laguna Lake is now covered by entitlements granted to private corporations or individuals to manage and develop fish pens.<br /><br />The Laguna Lake is the largest lake in the Philippines and one of the largest in Southeast Asia.<br />In view of its multiplicity of uses and benefits, its basin is the most important, dynamic and among the fastest-growing economic bases in the country. It has become the catch basin to Metro Manila’s population and urbanization/ industrialization overspill.<br /><br />As the region has developed, the lake has suffered increasing levels of agricultural, industrial and domestic wastewater pollution.<br /><br />The possible consequences of the rapid swelling of population include food and water shortage, worsening traffic congestion and environmental degradation, thus significantly affecting Laguna de Bay and its environs.<br /><br />Problems such as pollution and waste primarily from domestic and agricultural sources; multiple and often conflicting water uses; vulnerability of lake shore settlements and developments to flood hazards and related health and economic risks, and indecision over resettlement; poorly regulated developments on the shore land, and critical watersheds inclusive of tenurial constraints, database management and monitoring; and fragmented utility infrastructure developments, including silting and development regulations of these investments contribute to the degradation of the lake.<br /><br />In its draft medium-term development plan, the LLDA has recommended to intensify waste and pollution control through adaptive waste management systems primarily for domestic and agricultural sources; rationalize water use zoning to harmonize all uses within the lake including navigation and water-related waste management infrastructure; promote security of lake shore communities from flooding, health risks and minimize economic displacement through effective flood control programs and appropriate resettlement plans; rationalize watershed -- and shore land -- specific management policies based on validated threshold and vulnerability to sustain their ecological functions focused on incentive-based regulations and adaptive co-management systems; rationalize service and infrastructure-based network support for environmental management and sustainable economic uses of lake basin resources; rationalize ecotourism potential as development driver and promote lake-sensitive ecotourism developments; and adopt innovative financing schemes beyond regulatory fee collection, among others.<br /><br />President Duterte vowed the Laguna Lake "shall be transformed into a vibrant economic zone showcasing ecotourism by addressing the negative impact of a watershed destruction, land conversion and pollution." (Story by Lilybeth G. Ison/PNA)<br /><br />Source: https://www.facebook.com/notes/presidential-communications-government-of-the-philippines/lopez-to-order-dismantling-of-laguna-lake-fish-pens-revoking-of-big-firm-permits/1395349570494700<br /><br /></span></div> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID= 725455747220477567&target=facebook" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0S0FvmVeOZsZsyHBRYXs6SOZJFhYBhuQl7OyKadUhy4moMHToFTEST_ch1O_s7SEAdn5dqXBJMznFjilw7Ml42IQSpvsFeEt2olcocpNz3nSnB67pdCgiyERJ8dQXDr_rMeDI_fG1ydc/s1600/sharefb185.png" /></a> <a href="http://www.blogger.com/share-post.g?blogID=1985206085145330708&postID= 725455747220477567&target=twitter" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVWTbY-f69CzSsrK9okrvKibUin1YURVntTu2W1qH6so7vbU6RiR36tV5fVzui_gG4ArLMrsG3k4OvyDg33RZO134rMkgTJC0y_fHDi-Zxcf29jZSC3xcypmVNJ8EWhpyL9MiVhAa7vM/s1600/sharetw185.png" /></a></div> <br />

Environment News Lopez to order dismantling of Laguna Lake fish pens, revoking of big firm permits

In view of President Rodrigo Duterte's promise to prioritize poor fishermen in the use of the Laguna de Bay or Laguna Lake, Environme...

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