Manila Bulletin (Philippines): Citing reports from recent studies on climate change, Senator Loren Legarda reiterated on Sunday that the whole nation should waste no time and must work together to immediately establish the necessary mechanisms that would ward off the ill-effects of global warming.…Legarda, chair of the Senate Committee on Climate Change, said that with scientific certainty, the warming global climate is a threat to agriculture and food security to countries with populations heavily relying on the sector.
From 1970 to 1990, typhoons, floods and droughts resulted in an 82.4 percent loss to total Philippine rice production. When tropical cyclones "Ondoy," "Pepeng" and "Santi" hit the country in 2009, the agriculture sector alone lost P29.38 billion covering 30 provinces in seven regions.
"As we continue to face weather in extremes, public health, energy, water security, our biodiversity, and economic growth are also under grave threat. Most at risk are lives that we cannot put a price on," Legarda said.
"With all this in mind, we cannot afford to wait for the next screaming headline about death and destruction from typhoons, floods or drought before we take concrete actions. It is critical that the increased attention, interest, and sense of urgency in responding to the challenges posed by climate change and disaster risks are translated to local actions that effectively reduce disaster vulnerability," she further explained....
October 17, 2010, Super Typhoon Megi approaching the Philippines
No comments:
Post a Comment