Friday, October 23, 2009

Arroyo signs landmark Philippine climate change measure

GMA News TV: In the aftermath of devastating back-to-back storms, President Arroyo on Friday signed into law the “Climate Change Act of 2009" that calls for a national strategy for dealing with what many scientists regard as the gravest threat to the planet. The signing came amid the country's preparations for Typhoon Ramil, which is expected to hit northern Luzon over the weekend.

President Arroyo signed Republic Act 9729, the consolidated version of Senate Bill No. 2583 and House Bill No. 5982, in simple ceremonies at the Rizal Hall of Malacañang with several legislators and local officials in attendance.

Under the new law, an autonomous policy-making body attached to the Office of the President to be called the Climate Change Commission will be created to coordinate the programs of the government and represent the country in international climate change conferences. It will be chaired by the President, who shall appoint three commissioners.

The signing of the law comes two months before a landmark conference in Copenhagen in December, when global leaders are expected to approve a new climate change treaty that will chart the world’s carbon emissions future after the first commitment period for the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012….

Floods after Typhoon Ondoy, shot by Philippinepresidency, Wikimedia Commons, under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0 License

No comments: