'WE HAVE THE POWER TO HELP, REPLENISH MOTHER EARTH'

(Philippine Daily Inquirer) July 22, 2010

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

 

As I write this, typhoon “Basyang,” the first to enter our country this year, has just left Metro Manila and the central plains in darkness and disaster.

There had been flash floods, land-slides, crop and property losses and, most important, loved ones dead or missing.

It does not take an expert to predict the weather. Farmers and fishermen do it daily in the course of their livelihood.

And in these “modern” times, one can just Google Asia weather and one will know what’s in store.

But nothing prepared us for Basyang. We went through the disaster that was tropical storm “Ondoy” and, almost a year later, we are still recovering from it. It spelled out a clear message – climate change. Yet to this day, despite global negotiations, nothing concrete has been done; no mitigation and adaptation rules are clear.

The costs required to undo the damage wrought by Basyang will be more than any grant or loan extended to us.

The earth and its ecosystems have been under siege and at an accelerated pace ever since climaate change came into the picture.

That’s the inconvenient truth, and it’s sad that our so-called leaders have not fully grasped the meaning of global warming and climate change.

Its environmental effects will be so bad and no one will be exempt. There will be famine and hunger, food and water shortages, increasing poverty and an economy in shambles.

There will be no more time for negotiations as the little resources we will have left will be fought for in a war for survival.

But we have the power to help and replenish the earth, to lead and show the world.

We need to reforest on a massive scale, to create a carbon sink, to cut our greenhouse gases.

We need to protect our forest and oceans and our biodiversity.

We can do it if we have the will. If not, we should resign ourselves to many more Basyangs and suffer an ecological disaster.

 

WHEN WILL WE EVER LEARN TO PROTECT MOTHER EARTH

 

As I write this the onset of the rainy season has come early. With this we can expect more and more rains. Rains that will bring havoc to our people and country. We have not yet recovered from the destruction of Typhoon Ondoy And another year of typhoons will be upon us all.

I went up to Baguio two weeks ago and could not help but notice the conditions of the roads. It was a very hot day and the City of Baguio was not spared. Then the rains came and the floods with it. This was an eagle eye of what is to come during the monsoon season.

And it is only June. We will have an early monsoon season and a very strange one as the climate continues to change. The heat and the rain will never be the same. We will not be able to forecast weather accurately. And when the typhoons come they will show no mercy as we continue our destructive ways. Wanton logging and pollution.

The Climate Change conference has gone through so many meetings and negotiations are like a market place. Who are we to negotiate the Life of our planet. It is our duty to protect planet earth and not put a price tag on not polluting her. Until this day there are no real goals set forth. The 350ppm of CO2 must be agreed upon and reached for our planet to heal and yield a healthy ecology.

The BP oil spill in the gulf of Mexico is still uncontrolled as it pours out all the oil destroying the rich waters of the gulf. They will never have their lives back to normal.

It has been destroyed forever. I still do not understand why people like to play and destroy the environment as if it will replenish and cure herself naturally. Ecosystem benefits give us life and is estimated to at over 47 trillion dollars as per UNDP. Why destroy the planet that gives us LIFE.

Let us protect and enhance nature. We are in a time in history that we can make a big difference and save our planet our home.

Let us bite the bullet. Reduce GHG emissions and protect our forest. The real carbon sinks that will cure and replenish the earth. Let us have the political will to conserve nature and bring down our carbon footprint to ZERO.

Think environment and act to save mother earth.

 

THE CRUDE AWAKENING-OIL OR WATER

(Peoples Tonite) June 23, 2010

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

 

As I write this the BP oil spill in the gulf of Mexico has awakened the world to the destruction of oil spills. To this day it continues to wreck havoc to the gulf of Mexico. It seems that BP cannot seem to plug it and stop its destruction of the rich marine environment.

 

The spill is nearing land and will continue to spread to other parts of the ocean. As the typhoon season nears the oil spill will spread further in land and the seas. There is no way to restore the damage done. The entire gulf will become a dead zone. Where no fish and living organism can survive. The fishing industry and the livelihood of the many people who rely on the bounty of the seas will be lost forever. Time and time again we have advocated the change to clean renewable energy sources. Climate Change has given us a taste of what is to come if we continue to use oil, coal and other fossil fuels.

 

The temperature of the planet has gone up. Making the month of April the hottest month in recorded history. The same thing is happening in the Niger Delta for years and it continues to be ignored by the US and Europe. The BP oil spill has awakened the world since it is in the back yard of the US. The continued pronouncements of President Obama to the oil industry and their being called into a Congressional hearing is testament of their seriousness and concern. Yet this will not mitigate the damage done by the oil spill.

 

There are over 4,000 more oil rigs and all of them are vulnerable to accidents. To get into a project as dangerous as oil without knowing how to stop and contain it is a mystery to me and pure dereliction of monitoring controls. What puzzles me most is that this has been going on for over a century. Ever since oil was produced for commercial purposes. The many typhoons, flash floods and natural calamities brought forth by oil based pollution has not given the world leaders the political will to combat climate change.

 

Until today nothing has been agreed upon on GHG emissions. The negotiations are still going on as the planet continues to die. Now with the BP oil spill the world has spoken. They want action. They want a clean environment and a healthy ecology. We must get our of fossil fuels and move rapidly into clean renewable energy or we will be victims of more devastating environmental catastrophes. We must act now and stop the rhetoric. We are in a special time in history were we can make a difference and save our planet.

 

"Ignorance is like the night of the mind a night without moon or stars.

 

 

" CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE POLLUTERS ARE KILLING THE EARTH"

 

As I write this our country is suffering from the worse ever EL Nino phenomenon. It has wrecked havoc to our agriculture, our people and environment. The heat continues to take its toll. Our people are dying of heat strokes. Our farmers only work in the morning as the afternoon heat is unbearable. Our agricultural produce will drop drastically as our fields are all dry. The heat will go on and when the rains come it will pour and show no mercy. It seems we have not learned from Typhoon Ondoy and Pepeng. These happens every year and can only get worse. As we continue our business as usual ways. Logging our forest and polluting our environment. What is even worse is that this is happening all over the world. Global Warming and Climate Change has no boundaries. It will affect every country in our planet. Yet the Climate Change debate has not taken any concrete steps. No reduction in GHG emissions. And still they are for REDD+ were they say that plantations are forest. And can be cut. Lets get it very clear. Plantations are planted by man to be harvested. Virgin forest has been there for centuries. They contain all the rich biodiversity in the world. They harbor species of all kinds and medicinal cure like taxol for cancer cure. That is a forest and when it is cut and felled we will loose all that biodiversity including the water the forest retains. So when the rains come and they will they wreck havoc from the summit down to Our seas and oceans. destroying in its path towns,communities,agriculture and killing our people. And now there is the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Killing all life in the oceans creating Dead Zones. This oil spill will ravage the Gulf of Mexico and the rich coastal areas in the United States and Mexico. The spill is moving and will continue its devastation. As of today the spill has not been stopped. Advocates who claim they are protecting our environment should show real action and political will. Our MDG Millennium Development Goals have not been met. We have more poor today than 20 years ago. It is the International Year for Biodiversity were we committed to reduce biodiversity destruction. We are in a rare period in our history were we all can make a difference. The many environmental conferences. Copenhagen,Bonn,Cancun. We have the power to save our planet. Let the leaders of the COP-Conference of Parties put some teeth in an agreement to combat climate change. Let us go to renewable energy and get away from coal and oil. We may still have chance to save Mother Earth. Today, this year we have nothing to show. We have lost our biodiversity in a massive scale. It cannot be quantified. What more the lives lost? We urge all local and global leaders to learn from the past. And take real action to protect and conserve our environment. Or suffer its consequences.

 

By: Antonio M. Claparols

 

Do we have enough time to save the planet?

by: Antonio M. Claparols

 

As I write this Europe is facing its coldest winter ever a winter so strong that it had shut down several airports and train stations. The Euro star was stranded together with all other modes of transportation.

The Capitals of the most powerful countries were put on a stand still. Washington D.C was not spared as the US continues to be ravaged by the coldest winter storms.

Farmers and their agricultural produce have been destroyed. There food and livelihoods are lost. And still the winter storms are far from over.

While the northern countries continue their climatic winter storms. The other parts of the world are suffering from drought, famine, a water shortage ,a food shortage and an energy shortage.

In our country the extreme heat has dried up almost all our dams. And drought has destroyed our once rich agriculture into a dessert.

More than 1 Billion people in the world and more are below the poverty line. More than a billion people have no access to water, food and sanitation.

The economic crisis is far from over and magnified by the climatic ecological disasters.

The failure of Copenhagen and the failed goals of combating climate change has taken its toll. It will go on a on, year after year only with more viciousness as mother nature continues its cries for help. To save her from total destruction.

All these manifestations are real and cannot be ignored. They must be tackled with vigilance and resolve.

We cannot go on with business as usual. We need to take stock and save our dying planet. This year is the International year for Biodiversity. We all have pledged to restore biodiversity and enhance her.

Sad to say that our biodiversity loss has increased. From the land all the way to the oceans.

The number of dead zones in the global commons of the oceans have gone up. Ocean acidification is damaging our last frontier.

An yet we continue our rampage of the environment and for what? A few dollars more.

We will be celebrating Earth day next month. And every Earth day celebration seems to be getting worse for the earth.

We must do many things to conserve our only planet. Let us combat climate change with resolve.

Let us bring back the CO2 in our atmosphere back to 350ppm needed to sustain life.

We may not have enough time but we must act or suffer.

Let us greet each day a happy earth day by doing something for her. If we don't we will loose all life in our Mother Earth.

 

 

 

High time to adopt DST

(Philippine Daily Inquirer) March 6, 2010

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

 

WITH SUMMER HERE AND THE scouring heat upon us, and with the crises in energy and water looming, it may be good for the government to implement Day light Saving Time (DST).

 

Many other countries use DST to save energy, so why don't we?

 

With the long days, we can be more productive if we begin the workday earlier, whether outdoors or indoors.

 

Even in the farms, we can start work at the crack of dawn when the morning is still cool.

 

Implementing DST means maximizing the power of the sun.

 

We can save energy and water and take comfort in the idea that we are helping mitigate global warming's heavy toll on our precious resources.

 

As conscientious citizens, we have to educate ourselves and do our part in saving our planet.

 

What was it Confucius said? "Ignorance is like the night of the mind, a night without moon or start".

 

 

 

Filipino Exhorted on global warming

(Manila Bulletin) February 10, 2010
 

Even as the recent Copenhagen climate summit had failed, Filipinos must show the world that they are willing to work together in the fight against global warming.

 

This was according to Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) president Antonio M. Claparols.

 

"The task of saving the planet and protecting the environment, however, is so huge that we need all the help we can get," he said. "That is why the government and the private sector must join hands for this cause."

 

The summit in Copenhagen last December failed because of the inability of first world countries to cooperate and commit to a meaningful reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

 

"Copenhagen may have failed to inspire global leaders to save mother earth but it succeeded in creating  international awareness that the threat is very much real," Claparols said.

 

The Filipino nation, he added, can take the lead by example.

 

"For a start, we need to have a total log ban and launch a massive reforestation program," Claparols said. "In a very do-able scale, we also need to promote organic farming adn strictly enforce laws on illegal fishing."

 

 

 

WORLD LEADERS FAIL AT COPENHAGEN

(Sunday Star) December 27, 2009
 

World leaders have failed in its mission to forge a binding agreement that would drastically reduce greenhouse gas emission and bring down the carbon dioxide level to 350 ppm during the recent Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen.

Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) president Antonio M. Claparols said the effects of global warming to the environment, agriculture and humankind is being manifested all over the world but some highly-developed countries seem to ignore the signs.
"This will go down in history as a tragic mistake," Claparols said. "Our planet in peril. Our leaders must have the political will to battle climate change."

The ESP chief added that the climate negotiation in Copenhagen failed to address the common good, the welfare of the people and the protection of the environment.
"The superpowers impose their interest at the expense of the majority," he said.

The Copenhagen Accord acknowledges the need to limit global temperature rise to a minimum of two degrees Celsius. Yet, it has no specific target and legally-binding commitment from rich countries to reduce their emission by 2020 or earlier.
Also African countries see the 2 degrees limit of the accord as very dangerous explaining that the agreed limit may be a devastation to the African people who are calling for a 1.5 degrees Celsius limit.

"We all wanted this conference to reduce GHG to 350ppm of CO2 and we all wanted a chance to give back to our planet what we have taken," Claparols said. "That's why we are disappointed at the leaders at Copenhagen and hail as heroes those that stood against the developed countries. We demand that our leaders and the rest of the world to unilaterally reduce GHG voluntarily."
One solution to global warming the ESP is supporting is to protect the remaining rainforests in the world and go into a massive reforestation program.

"That is the only way to save us all from the looming ecological disaster," he said.
 

 

 

Let us support organic agriculture

(Insurance Manila)  November-December 2009

 

Among the sectors most affected by climate change is agriculture. Ironically, it is also one of the biggest contributors to global warming. This is according to Ecological Society of the Philippines president Antonio M. Claparols who is also calling on the Philippine government to widely promote and support organic farming. "Agriculture significantly contributes to global warming. According to a recent study, aroung 30% of all greenhouse gas emissions from human activity comes from agriculture. The major culprits are the overuse of industrial fertilizers and land degredation," said Claparols. "That is why we need to shift to more sustainable farming practice and start using organic fertilizers on a wide scale." Claparols said Filipino farmers need to be properly educated on cropland management, appropriate use of fertilizers and restoration of organic soils as carbon sinks. "Needles to say, farmers are among the most vulnerable to global warming because farmlands and its crops are the first casualties of environmental calamities not only here but also in other countries," he said. "This is a global problem and the Philippines, being primarily an agricultural country, must be in the forefront of the battle against global warming." As a major effect of global warming, Claparols warned, seasons will gradually change and extreme weather events such as heavy rains, flooding, typhoons and drought will multiply in the years to come. "But it is not yet too late," Claparols said. "Our country is rich in natural resources. If we can do the right thing and take care of our environment, we will have food security."

 

 

 

Government urged to support agri

(Manila Bulletin) December 17, 2009 12:00 AM

Among the sectors most affected by climate change is agriculture. Ironimcally, it is also one of the biggest contributors to global warming.

This is according to Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) president Antonio M. Claparols who is also calling on the Philippine government to widely promote and support organic farming.

Agriculture significantly contributes to global warming. According to a recent study, around 30 percent of all green-house gas emissions from human activity comes from agriculture. The major culprits are the overuse of industrial fertilizers and land degredation," said Claparols.

That is why we need to shift to more sustainable farming practice and start using organic fertilizers on a wide scale.

Claparols said Filipino farmers need to be properly educated on cropland management, appropriate use of fertilizers and restoration of organic soils as carbon sinks.

Needless to say, farmers are among the most vulnerable to global warming because farmlands and its crops are the first casualties of environmental calamities not only here but also in other countries," he said. This is a global problem and the Philippines, being primarily an agricultural country, must be in the forefront of the battle against global warming.

 

Pinoys must learn lessons from Ondoy, Pepeng - ESP (The Philippine Star) Updated November 29, 2009 12:00 AM

 

 

Climate change will haunt us

 

IT has been over a month since Typhoon Ondoy visited us to give us some water, the source  of all life. What turned out to be a visit with rain became flash floods that wrought severe damage.

 

Nobody was spared. Everyone was effected, each having his/her own stories to tell. Cities and towns were covered with mud and water. The water came so fast that it caught everyone by surprise. It was coming everywhere rapidly.

 

Angry nature struck people and property. Many families lost everything they had. They need to start anew, to begin all over again.

 

Civil society and the bayahinhan spirit ruled the day. The Filipino spirit was at its best and I am proud to be a Filipino.

 

What gets me mad is that all this and more will again happen and again. It will be worse the next time. Climate change is real and wil haunt us and our children's children.

 

This is our battle and we must win it. We must abate climate change at all costs.

 

Our planet and people are at stake; or else all flora and fauna will vanish.

 

But rain comes from above and not flowing like a raging river -- flash floods in the citystreets are something else.

 

The people have all the right to know when the dam master is to release water.

 

Dams are a destructive monument whose time will come. Just like the Hoover Dam in the U.S. they destroy rivers, mountains and the sease. Aside from destroying all biodiversity, all of our flood chain is affected.

 

The World Commission on Dams report to the World Bank has made the latter stop the funding of large dams.

 

Never in my lifetime have I seen Metro Manila, as it is today -- destruction and dosolation all over. People need to be better prepared to dealwith the floods.

 

They are many lessons to be learned by Ondoy's wrath.

 

1. We must have a total logging ban, protect our remaining forest and embark in a massive reforestation program.

 

2. We must combat climate change.

 

3. We must stop converting forest and agricultural land into buildings.

 

4. We must have invironmental education in all levels.

 

5. We must all know about the environment and prioritize it.

 

6. We must stop polluting our land and water.

 

7. We must recycle and segregate.

 

8. We must be ready for the worse.

 

9. In reliefe use eco-friendly material not plastic.

 

There are so many things that we could have done. So many lives would have been  saved. As of today, the cost of the damage is estimated at over P10 billion.

 

I believe it is much more. More than 255,000 metric tons of rice have been destroyed, posing greater threats as our people are already hungry.

 

There are many who still need food and water. I am furious at the thought that there are so many people still missing and yet the logging and extraction go on and it is business as usual.

 

This must be stopped. We need to take stock and appraise the lessons we have learned and implement them. A healthy ecology would not have caused Ondoy's wrath.

 

For our children and theirs, we must act now.

 

 

 

 

ONDOY'S WRATH "when will we ever learn?"

 

It has been almost two weeks since typhoon Ondoy visited us to give  us some water, the source of all life. What turned out to be visit with rain became flashfloods that destroyed the entire Manila.

 

Nobody was spared. Everyone was effected and have their own stories to tell. Cities and towns were covered with mud and water. The water came so fast that, it cought everyone by surprise. It was coming everywhere. Until today there are places unpassable, people missing and hungry. Many have lost everything they had. They need to start a new, to begin all over again.

 

The relief efforts are moving slow. Civil society and the bayanihan spirit ruled the day. The Filipino spirit was at its best and I am proud to be a Filipino.

 

What gets me mad is that all this and more will happen again and again. It will be worse the next time. Climate Change is real and will haunt our children's children and us. This is our battle and we must win it. We must abate climate change at all cost. The planet and people are at stake. All flora and fauna will vanish.

 

But rain comes from above and not flowing like a raging river a flashflood in the city streets is something else.

 

The peole have all the right to know when the dam master is to release water. Dams are a destructive monuments whose time will come.

 

Just like the Hoover Dam in the US. They destroy the rivers, mountains and the seas. All of our food chain is affected.

 

The world Commission on Dams report to the World Bank has made them stop the funding of large dams. Aside from destroying all biodiversity.

 

If the dam master announced the releasing of water the farmer would have time to harvest their crop of which now is totally destroyed.

         

The people would have been better prepared to deal with a flood like this. Never in my lifetime have I seen Manila, as it is today mud floods.

 

They are many lessons to be learned by Ondoy's wrath.

 

1. We must have a total logging ban, protect our remaining forest and embark in a massive reforestation program.

 

2. We must combat climate change.

 

3. We must stop converting forest and agricultural land into buildings.

 

4. We must have invironmental education in all levels.

 

5. We must all know about the environment and prioritize it.

 

6. We must stop polluting our land and water.

 

7. We must recycle adn segregate.

 

8. We must be ready for the worse.

 

9. In reliefe use eco-friendly material not plastic.

 

There are so many things that we could have done. So many lives would have been saved. As of today the cost of the damage is estimated at over 10Billion pesos.

 

I believe it is much more. More than 255,000 metric tons of rice has been destroyed and our people are hungry. There are many who still need food and water what more a life to sustain. I am furious at the thought that there are so many people still missing and yet the logging/extraction goes on and it is business as usual.

 

This must be stopped. We need to take stock and appraise what lessons we have learned learned and implement them. A healthy ecology would have not caused Ondoys wrath. For our children and theirs we must act now.

 

 

 

NGO urges gov't to promote organic farming

 

Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) President Antonio M. Claparols has called on the government to promote and support organic agriculture.

 

"It has been proven that agriculture significantly contributes to global warming due to the overuse of fertilizers and land degredation," said Claparols. "That is why we need to shift to more sustainable farming practices and start using organic fertilizers on a wide scale."

 

According to Claparols, Filipino farmers need to be properly educated on cropland management, appropriate use of fertilizers and restorations of organic soils as carbon sinks, among others. Farmers, themselves, are among the most vulnerable to global warming because farmlands and their crops are the first casualties of environmental calamities.

 

One of the biggest setbacks organic farming has suffered abroad is the notion that it can not yield enough crops to feed the people. But Claparols said the country can produce sufficient organic fertilizers to boost yields substantially.

 

"Our countryis rich in natural resources, "Claparols said. "And if we take care of our agriculture and our environment, we will have food security."

 

Organic farming can be used to mitigate global warming by decreasing fossil fuel emissions while limiting the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Additionally, improved soil quality and efficient water use can strengthen the agno ecosystem while practices that enhance biodiversity allow farms to mimic natural ecological processes which enable them to better respond to climate change.

 

 

Relief workers should use eco-friendly packaging

 

 

WITH ALL THE DAMAGE CAUSED BY "Ondoy" and "Pepeng," our people continue to suffer from the effects of the floods caused by wanton deforestation and pollution of our environment.

 

Our people continue to suffer from the floods and the mud.

 

To add to this, the piles of plastic trash threaten to fill our land and water with toxic waste.

 

Plastics are very dangerous and will destroy our environment, and our people sill suffer more.

 

We commend our people for their bayanihan spirit, but we urge all those helping the flood victims to use eco-friendly packaging for relief goods.

 

We can use baskets, rice bags, abaca baskets and other materials that are biodegradable and can be used again and again.

 

May we request the government agencies, local government units, and all others concerned to pick up all the plastic bags used to recycle them.

 

Trash recycling efforts are a necessary part relief operations.

 

Plastic waste must not be allowed to pile up and cause toxic pollutions in our waters and lands.

 

Other countries have banned the use of plastics for relief operations because of the damage these materials inflict on the environment.

 

Information on alternatives to plastics is handily available in Google.

 

 

 

RP urged to promote renewable energy

 

The Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) is urging the government to promote the use of renewable energy to help abate the effects of climate change.

 

"We are now experiencing the on slaught of global warming," said ESP president Antonio M. Claparols." On thing we can do is to tap renewable sources of energy and stop our dependency to oil, coal and other sources of energy that harm the environment."

 

According to Claparols, the United States and European Union are gearing towards the use of clean energy and that at least 73 countries, at the end of 2008, have renewable energy policy targets.

 

Among the most popular and effective sources of renewable energy are social wind power.

 

"Solar photovoltaic power continued to be the fastest growing power generation technology in the world. In fact, India emerged as a major producer of solar photovoltaics in 2008," Claparols said. "In China, the total wind power capacity doubled in 2008."

 

"If countries, more developed than us, are using solar and wind power, I see no reason why we can't tap these sources of energy." Claparols added.

 

Renewable energy is derived from natural processes that are replenished constantly such as sunlight wind, tides, rain and geothermal energy.

 

"We are a country so rich in renewable sources of energy. We should take advantage of this clean and natural resource" he said.

 

 

 

Action urged on global warming

 

The Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) is calling on the government and the private sector to mitigate the effects of global warming.

 

"No, I'm not just talking creating a commission or mapping out plans," ESP president Antonio M. Claparols said. "We need to take real action on the ground, we must take the initiative,"

 

Scientists all over the world had already identified the problems and had offered solutions to help mitigate climate change.

 

"It is now up to us to do what is needed to be done and not just talk about it, "he said. "We need to reduce GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions, we need to build on the growing public desire for governments to act on climate change and we need to reduce inertia in social and economic systems."

 

Many scienstists believe that fossil fuel emissions such as methane and carbon dioxide which end up in the earth's atmosphere, contribute heavinly to the rise of global temperature. Compounding the problem is teh continous devastation of rainforests which serves as catch basins that help rid the atmosphere of poisonous gases.

 

Among the actions Claparols is suggesting is the wide use of clean and renewable energy, advancement of organic farming, and protection of the country's remaining forests.

 

"Renewable energy is cheaper than fossil fuel and, more importantly, it helps abate the effects of global warming," he said

 

 

ESP pushes organic farming

 

 

The Ecological Society of the Philippines is calling on the government and the private sector to seriously tackle the issue on climate change and the destruction it has done to our food, water and biodiversity.

 

"Each day, the effects of global warming are getting more severe, the weather all over the world has been unpredictable more than ever," said ESP president Antonio M. Claparols, who added that since 1990, the mean global temperature has risen by 0.33 degrees.

 

Studies also suggest that the northern hemisphere is now warmer than at anytime in at least 1,200 years.

 

But there are ways to combat climate change.

 

For starters, Claparols said, the country needs to support and promote organic farming. Studies show that organic methods of farming could produce enough food to sustain the current human population, and potentially an even larger population, without increasing the agricultural land base.

 

"Organic agriculture and the increase in farm inputs will help our farmers, who constitute the backbone of our country," said Claparols. "At the same time it would help fight climate change."

 

Improved soil quality and efficient water use is said to strengthen agroecosystem, while practice that enhance biodiversity allow farms to mimic natural ecological processes, which enables them to better respond to change thereby increasing its ability to continue functioning when faced with unexpected events such as climate change.

 

Claparols added that the government can help by offering incentives to farmers who go organic.

 

"Farmers are among the most vulnerable to climate change because they rely heavily on agriculture as their primary sector and need affordable solutions, based on their own resources and skills, to prevent excessive losses," he said

 

 

The Ecological Society of the Philippines is calling on the government and the private sector to seriously tackle the issue on climate change and the destruction it has done to our food, water and biodiversity.

 

 

Let's Support Organic Farming

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

 

The Ecological Society of the Philippines is calling on the government and the private sector to seriously tackle the issue on climate change and the destruction it has done to our food, water and biodiversity.
 
"Each day, the effects of global warming are getting more severe, the weather all over the world has been unpredictable more than ever," said ESP president Antonio M. Claparols, who added that since 1990, the mean global temperature has risen by 0.33 degrees.
Studies also suggest that the northern hemisphere is now warmer than at any time in at least 1,200 years.
 
But there are ways to combat climate change.
 
For a start, Claparols said, the country need to support and promote organic farming. Studies show that organic methods of farming could produce enough food to sustain the current human population, and potentially an even larger population, without increasing the agricultural land base.
 
"Organic agriculture and the increase in farm inputs will help our farmers, who the backbone of our country," said Claparols. "At the same time it would help fight climate change."
 
Improved soil quality and efficient water use is said to strengthen agroecosystems, while practices that enhance biodiversity allow farms to mimic natural ecological processes, which enables them to better respond to change thereby increasing its ability to continue functioning when faced with unexpected events such as climate change.
 
Claparols added that the government can help by offering incentives to farmers who go organic.
 
"Farmers are among the most vulnerable to climate change because they rely heavily on agriculture as their primary sector and need affordable solutions, based on their own resources and skills, to prevent excessive losses," he said.

 

 

 

 

Mining moratorium proposed by NGO

 

Mining operations are a threat to farming, rice production and fishing.

 

This was stressed by a coalition of environmental groups, the church and the civil society in a recent conference held at the University of the Philippines Bahay Kalinaw.

 

"The Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) shares this stand that is why we are urging the government to enforce a mining moratorium and prioritize food production," said ESP president Antonio M. Claparols.

 

The Working Group of Mining in the Phiilppines (WGMP) also launched a fact-finding book entitled Mining or Food authored by Dr. Robert Goodland; a former director of the World Bank, and Clive Wicks of International Union for conservation of Nature-Commissions on Environment, Economics and Social Policy.

 

The said panel included Senator Aguilino "Nene" Pimental Jr., Dr. Robert Goodland, Clive Wicks, Fr. Frank Nally, Arturo Baquirin and Mr. Catal Doyle of the National University of Ireland.

 

The 280 page book documented the many negative effects of mining in the country. The book highlights effects and makes recommendations to the goverment, the industry and the people.

 

"Mining has indeed done a lot of damage in our country. The remaining forest we have is estimated at 2% percent. Our coral reefs and mangrove swamps have been destroyed. Our people are dying from mercury poisoning and other heavy metals," Claparols added.

 

In February, 2008 the working group on mining came to the Philippines and documented  six actual and proposed mining locations on the islands of Mindoro and Mindanao.

 

 

Go organic and stop using GMOs--NGO

 

The Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) reiterated yesterday its call to stop using crops with GMOs or genetically manufactured organisms.

 

"GMOs not only destroy the environment, it is harmful to human health and the food chain," warned ESP president Antonio M. Claparols.

 

A recent research shows the ability of organic agriculture to both reduce greenhouse gas emissions with fewer energy inputs and withstand climate change impacts like drought with greater efficacy. This is in stark contrast to genetically engineered crops which has yet to overcome technical and social hurdles.

 

"The earth is rapidly warming and this is going to drastically affect our food supply," Claparols added. "GMOs will certainly not help abate the effects of climate change which are well manifested."

 

The ESP has also urged the Philippine government to help the local farmers and promote organic farming not only to battle global warming but also to fight  the food crisis.

 

The research also noted that the organic systems used 28 to 32 percent fewer energy inputs, retained soil carbon and soil nitrogen better, and offered a higher profitability over conventional systems. Even the United Nations recognized the opportunity presented by organic production in a report late last year.

 

"Needless to say, organic is a more economical and more accessible form of agriculture. We have to save our biodiversity and we must have food security," Claparols added.

 

---

 

ESP welcomes Obama stand on global warming

 

The Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) welcomes the pronouncement of US President Barack Obama to combat global warming.

 

"Finally, environmental groups all over the world will have a very powerful ally in the White House," said ESP president Antonio M. Claparols. "I hope that President Obama will fulfill his promise to help fight global warming, not like his predecessor George W. Bush."

 

The Bush administration had opposed any imposition of emissions limits in the US and had refused to ratify the Kyoto Protocal on reducing greenhouse gases.

 

"But we need to act fast," Claparols warned. "The disastrous environmental impacts manifested by climate change has reached catastrophic proportions as manifested in the melting ice caps, the scarcity of food and the unpredictable weather."

 

In one of his speeches, Obama promised to change the US environmental policy and the reduce gas emissions by 80 percent in 2050 and make the US the leader in the battle against climate change. He also plans to create a Global Energy Forum of the Worlds largest emitters to focus exclusively on global energy and environmental issues.

 

"We welcome, with hope, the plants of US President Obama knowing that he will make a big difference," Claparols added.

 

---

 

Obama's promise on global warming lauded

 

The Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) welcomes the pronouncement of US President Barack Obama to combat global warming.

 

"Finally, environmental groups all over the world will have a very powerful ally in the White House," said ESP president Antonio M. Claparols. "I hope that President Obama will fulfill his promise to help fight global warming, not like his predecessor George W. Bush."

 

The Bush administration had opposed any imposition of emissions limits in the US and had refused to ratify the Kyoto Protocol on reducing greenhouse gas.

 

"But we need to act fast," Claparols warned. "The disastrous environmental impacts manifested by climate change has reached catastrophic proportions as manifested in the melting ice caps, the scarcity of food and the unpredictable weather."

 

In one of his speeches, Obama promised to change the US environmental policy and to reduce gas emissions by 80 percent in 2050 and make the US the leader in the battle against climate change. He also plans to create a Global Energy Forum of the world's largest emitters to focus exclusively on global energy and environmental issues.

 

"We welcome, with hope, the plans of US President Obama knowing that he will make a big difference," Claparols added.

 

 

 

We need frugal ways

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

 

 

As I write this, the world is experiencing the worse economic meltdown in history.

 

The main focus continues to be how to save the world's economic order and the many institutions that have collapse and have been bailed out by their governments Central Banks.

 

The printing of more paper money and the lowering of interest rates by the world's Central Banks and by the Federal Reserve Board Seem  to have no end. The more bailouts, it appears, the worse the economies will go.

 

The latest industry asking for a bail-out is the U.S. corn industry.

 

How can an agricultural crop subsidized by the U.S. government ask for a bail out? It is like we are rewarding the many CEO's who have stolen and fooled the investing public all these years.

 

Should the bail-out of the U.S. automotive industry proceed, such action must include re-tooling the entire assembly lines for their products to transition to environmentally friendly cars.

 

Let them introduce hybrids and electric cars. Let them be small and efficient. Let them re-tool the entire industrial complex into an environmentally friendly industry. One that will enhance  the environment -- thus aspiring to save the lives of billions of people who are at the poverty level.

 

One that could bring the people and planet with all the ecosystem benefits that would truly make the world a better and healthier place to live in. One that would assure the survival of the people and planet, hoping that along the way, economic problems would be solved.

 

As I write this, at the first few weeks of the New Year, typhoons have wrought havoc in Mindanao, the land of promise, as it was known once upon a time.

 

The floods that ravaged Mindanao with the onset of Typhoon Auring have devastated communities, filled our rivers and seas with silt, eroded coastal lines heavily and damaged our marine environment.

 

The millennium development goals have yet to be met as more and more people have no access to water and sanitation, food and shelter.

 

The environmental devastation will continue as climate change will manifest itself in more severe ways.

 

The winter in the northern countries have reached record levels, destroying agriculture and urban centers. It is much like the world has been put into a standstill as the bitter cold has kept the population in a freeze.

 

No better sign of things to come if we do not address the real problem.

 

We must lower greenhouse gas emissions. We must protect our forest and seas.

 

We must conserve our biodiversity and make all our ecosystems healthy so that we can have the benefits needed to solve the ecological disaster. It will take a longer time to protect our dying environment.

 

The economic problem facing the world can be solved with more frugal ways. We need to be less wasteful. We need to use only what we need. Sustainable use is the name of the game.

 

Rich in natural resources, we have one of the richest and greatest levels of biodiversity in the world. We are blessed with our natural capital. Let us protect it.

 

Renewable and clean energy is the vehicle that will lead us to making the Earth safe. We must not lose focus of teh ecological meltdown, for this is the real problem.

 

Availability of food and water, averting species extinction as wella as having clean air and the basic necessities for life on our only planet are more important.

 

Already, we are out of trees yet our forest are still being cut down.

 

It is time to address the real problem -- SAVING THE PLANET.

 

Let us start the New Year with more vigilance and resolve and protect and conserve our environment.

 

Again I say: Good Economics is a Healthy Environment.

 

 

 

Protection of coral reefs pushed

 

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has raised an alarm over the destruction of 19 percent of all coral reefs in the world as a result of global warming.

 

Being a country rich in marine resources, the Philippines should look into this matter, Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) president Antonio M. Claparols said.

 

"We should act upon saving our marine environment," he said, adding that "we are in the coral triangle and have one of the richest and more diverse coral barrier reefs in the world."

 

Coral reefs constitute the most biologically diverse marine eco-systems on earth. Aside from climate change, the other threats to coral reefs are over fishing, coastal development, marring pollution and other human activity.

 

While the rest of the problems can be easily solved by legislation, regulation and vigilance, global warming is considered the biggest threat of all because of its long-term effects on biodiversity in general.

 

"If we lose our coral reefs we will lose our food chain  and rich marine biodiversity." Claparols said. "Climate change abatement and lowering carbon emissions will save our rich corals. That is why we at ESP are strongly urging government and the private sector to help save our marine treasure," he added.

 

 

 The future of our children

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

 

 

AS I write this, the world is experiencing the worse winter on record.

 

And to think that the winter calendar has just began.

 

Consider these: the Arctic Ice is melting ever so fast, and if what scientists says is about to happern, Alaska is going to face three summers!

 

All this is no laughing matter.

 

Yet leadership on the grounds in question seems to worry more about who would own what  is underneath the melting Arctic Ice.

 

These issues make me reflect: what priorities are more important?

* the melting Arctic ice bundled in the Ecological Time Bomb; or

 

* the economic giants that are being bailed out.

 

For far too long have we been talking about necessary technology being available; and for far too long has the other side been defensively insisting that pro-active programs would be too expensive.

 

Yet the ecology has shown an even faster meltdown.

 

Look at what has happened to our weather:

  8 Ice cups rapidly flowing;

* Severe winter weather in many parts, notably the Eastern U.S.;

* Snow is Las Vegas; yet, no snow in some ski resorts;

* Famine and drought in many regions.

 

The agricultural system is virtually being ravaged.

 

We can no longer plan what crop to plant when.

 

Among the solutions proffered is organic agriculture which could abate the effects of climate change.

 

Our forests and biodiversity continue to be destroyed. Our rivers  and seas are constantly being polluted. Our food chain is in danger.

 

Water and sanitation have never been more critical. Poverty is on the rise.

 

All this talk on conservation and GHG (green house gas) emission reduction seems to be a lot of rhetoric. More acoustic than anything else.

 

In seems to me that mercilessly, Mother Earth's life is being snuffed out, along with anyone and anything that draw sustenance and life from her.

 

We cannot and will not allow this to happen.

 

Ignoring this despondency, the SPACE NEWS DAILY has emblazoned in this headline: IN THE YEAR 2030, HUMANKIND SHALL HAVE KILLED PLANET EARTH.

 

I do hope our Planet can last that long.

 

Ecosystems are collapsing and we do not have much time

 

When we were young, we had a lot of threes and our parents juxtaposed -- in old, cold logic -- the perpetual scarcity of money with the humungous growth of trees and often barked at our please (for pera) with the comment: "What do you think, that money grows on trees?"

 

The worrisome truth today is that we have significantly lower forest cover left. Too little to even talk about.

 

We say: Act now, All of us must CHANGE our ways.

 

We need to act and save Mother Earth so that she will be able to sustain us and our children's children. We pray that the year 2009 be an environmental milestone.

 

  

Good Economics is Healthy Ecology

 

AS I write this, the global economic meltdown has gathered momentum, spreading to nearly all parts of the globe.
    
More bailouts continue in the U.S., the European Union, and the U.K.  as governments desperately seek to find a quick fix to the already gloomy situation.
   
Markets, from New York to Hong Kong, are in a daze.
   
Financial whiz kids and the Federal Reserve Board are all going bananas on how to save their economies first (and other economies globally, second).
   
The present model obviously is the wrong model.
   
In my view, there will always be solutions to economic failures.
   
A ray of hope is shining   through from Bangladesh   where Prof. Muhammad Yunus, CEO of the Grameen Bank, successfully applied micro-credit -- the extension of small loans to small entrepreneurs.
   
Recall that Grameen Bank, which he founded, and his extraordinary work were   jointly awarded   the Nobel Peace Prize.
   
Where his projects are in place, the critical stakeholders measure the bank�s success not in dollars and cents but by the number of   children who have been sent to school, and the number of   solar-powered houses established.
   
Now, it is appropriate to ask ourselves: how much have we   invested in people and the future?
   
I write this sadly and with extreme concern, seeing how the environment has been given scant attention by current world leaders.
   
At this time, the U.S. Eastern Seaboard is experiencing its coldest season -- and it is not yet winter time.
   
The same goes for European cities that have been locked in freezing temperatures.
   
The Arctic Ice is melting. Eco-systems are collapsing rapidly. Eco-system benefits are over U.S. $47 Trillion, as cited by the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) at its last count.
   
We are talking about eco-life, economics-management, and ecology-management of the planet.
   
The Greek had this in their laws: economics and ecology go hand in hand. They are inseparable. They complement one another.
   
A good ecology will enhance good economics. Species are going extinct faster than they are being discovered.
   
The IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) has reported that 1/4 (one-fourth) of all mammals have gone extinct. The same goes for amphibians.
   
On the other hand, hope for real change has   been raised by President-elect Barack Obama of the U.S.
   
Of course, it has taken a long time from the days Martin Luther King had said: �I have a dream.�
   
Following formation of his transition team, Mr. Obama has mentioned he would take on climate change issues as a priority.
   
This statement is music to our ears.
   
When the most powerful (and also, the most wasteful) country says it will fight climate change, then the world has reason to look forward and cheer.
   
Together, we can make a difference to fight the environmental and economic meltdown.
   
Yes, we can. All in unison. I too, had a dream that our planet would be ecologically healthy.
   
And that peace will reign and goodwill prevails.
   
As I have always advocated, a healthy environment is good economics.
   
(Antonio M. Claparols is president of the Ecological Society of the Philippines).

 

 

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 Environmentalists expect Obama to deliver on promise

 

Environmentalists all over the world are banking on United States president-elect Barrack Obama's commitment to fight global warming and the destruction of the ecosystem, a local environmentalist said yesterday.

 

"But we need concrete actions from a powerhouse nation like the United States to follow their lead," said Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) president Antonio M. Claparols.

 

"As of this day I have not seen emission cuts. What we have seen is continued unabated development in an economic crisis. What is worse is we have seen ecosystems begin to collapse," Claparols said.

 

After years of study and vigilance, scientist and environmentalists are still resolving the threat of global warming, he said, adding that the effects of climate change have reached massive proportions in all parts of the world and world leaders need to take real action.

 

"The melting ice caps, the Arctic ice, the extreme weather, floods, droughts, famine, poverty, new diseases, species extinction and biodiversity loss. These are some of the signs that our planet is in danger," Claparols said.

 

During his successful campaign for the US presidency, Obama promised a big change in the position of the U.S. on climate change and emission reduction.

 

But even without Obama's lead, Claparols said the Philippine government needs to cut its carbon emission into a significant level and strictly enforce laws that protect the environment.

 

"We need carbon sinks by preserving our remaining rain forests. We also need to protect  our seas and conserve our last food chain supply. What we have seen are over 150 dead zones in our oceans and seas and they are expanding. What we have seen is continued wanton destruction of our forest," he said.

 

 

---

 

Group calls for total logging ban

 

The Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) is calling on the government to implement a total logging ban policy in all primary natural forests in the country.

 

According to ESP president Antonio M. Claparols, the logging ban will immediately abate the effects of global warming.

 

 

"Natural forests can store three times more carbon dioxide than reforested plantations," Claparols said. "If we really want to mitigate the effects of climate change all we really need to do is protect and conserve our natural forest and biodiversity as well as slow down on greenhouse gas emissions."

 

A recent study in Australia finds that "untouched natural forests store three times more carbon dioxide than previously estimated and 60 percent more than plantation forests" and that first time "logging resulted in more than a 40 percent reduction in long-term carbon compared with  unlogged forests."

 

"This is a confirmation that what we have been fighting for is true," Claparols said.

 

Scientists said that the role of untouched forests, and their biomass of green carbon, had been underestimated in the fight against global warming. Not only did natural forests store more carbon but because they remained untouched, they stored the carbon longer than plantation forests which were cut down on a rotation basis.

 

Rainforests act as natural sinks for carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. They take up the carbon dioxide and release oxygen into the atmosphere.

 

"If we destroy our forests, we upset this balance. With lesser trees in the forests, the more carbon dioxide shall be left in the atmosphere, thus, less oxygen shall be released," Claparols added.

 

"That is why we are calling on the government to stop logging our remaining natural forest and to protect and conserve them."

 

 

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Saving the earth in Barcelona

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

 

Barcelona -- IN THIS BEAUTIFUL CITY where Antoni Gaudipeace and inspiration, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) held its 4th World Conservation Congress early last month, in the hope of finding ways to save the world from extinction.

 

Indeed, earth, as we know it faces the greatest challenge ever. The arctic ice is melting fast, species have begun to disappear even before they are identified, and water and food shortages are plaguing many countries.

 

Almost all of the world's forests have been logged, and the remaining few are at risk of destruction.

 

Water, the resources of all life and once so bountiful, is drying up.

 

The oceans, the last frontier that once had bountiful marine resources, are now a garbage dump, with 150 dead zones at last count. These dead zones have run out of oxygen, thereby killing marine species. The home of Moby Dick and the great whales are now in danger of losing all life.

 

As I write this, the US economic bubble has burst and the global economy is feeling the crunch.

 

It was 60 years ago that the IUCN was founded by an eminent group of forward thinking people in the forest city of Fontainebleau, in France. (Its founding name was International Union for the Protection of Nature.)

 

The IUCN was founded on Oct. 5, 1948, when the world was still recovering from the devastating effects of World War II.

 

Today, it�s founded on Oct. 5, 1948, when the world was still recovering from the devastating effects of World War II.

 

Today, we are founding fathers would be aghast by Earth's conditions.

 

Today, we are witnesses to how the planet that we were supposed to protect and conserve, has been ravaged.

 

Today, we face a shortage of food and water, with over a billion people living under poverty level.

 

---

 

Climate change

Global warning and climate change fueled by man's greed and lust for material wealth have reached unprecedented levels.

 

The global average surface temperatures have increased on the average by about 0.6 degrees Celsius during the period 1956 2006, resulting in an alarming rise of sea levels.

 

Melting ice caps on the mountain ranges have wrought havoc in many countries, flooding communities and ecosystems, eroding the rich topsoil and ultimately destroying coral reefs, mangrove swamps and estuaries.

 

This year alone, Earth has experienced the most unpredictable weather ever, with fierce droughts, hurricanes and typhoons.

 

The United Nations millennium development goals set forth during the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002, in Johannesburg, South Africa, have yet to bear fruit.

 

War is being waged in many parts of the globe and food lines have become a way of life.

 

The deserts continue to expand and re claim what was once pristine forest.

 

There are so many issues to tackle, so many battles to wage, and yet the wanton degradation of our natural capital remains unabated.

 

---

 

Grameen Bank

Muhammad Yunus, the Nobel Peace laureate from Bangladesh, who is the founder and CEO of Grameen Bank, was one of the key speakers at the opening ceremony.

 

Another notable figure was the guest of honor, Prince Felipe of Asturias, who aired the many ecological problems, as well as his hopes that the Congress would bring the solutions needed to save Earth.

 

Yunus advocated the importance of social business and corporate social responsibility. He talked about Grameen Bank as a model for everyone to follow.

 

The bank extends loans to the poor without collateral in amount as small as $10 and averaging #200. The repayment and payback ratio is nearly 100 percent, with a loan portfolio of over $1 billion.

 

Grameen Bank measures profitability not by dollars and cents but by how many people it has helped, and how many children it has fed, nourished and sent to school.

 

It is a far cry from the old business and economic models, and indeed, the bank has not been affected by the crisis the world economy is grappling with.

 

Yunus, whose latest innovation and venture was to build solar-powered homes in Bangladesh, even quipped that he was thinking of buying an American bank soon.

 

He said that over 130,000 homes in his country were being powered by solar energy, and their goal in this venture was to build a million such homes by the end of 2015.

 

I was very impressed by yunus. His country is considered one of the poorest in the world, but Isis on the right track.

 

How I wish that multinational corporations would follow his example so that we will still have hope of revitalizing nature and conserving its natural capital.

 

---

 

Inspirational

Touring the rich and cultural city of Barcelona, from Las Ramblas to Port Vell, from Gaudi's Sagrada Familia to the Museu Picasso, we were inspired by their works and enlivened by the hope that this Congress would galvanize the greatly needed impetus to save humankind.

 

Let not the beautiful city of Barcelona, whose charm can mesmerize anyone, fade away unnoticed.

 

Let it imbue the Congress delegates with the same inspiration that it gave Gaudi and Picasso.

 

Let us win this war and give nature the right to life.

 

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Group urges immediate total logging ban

The Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) is calling for a total logging ban policy in all primary natural forests to abate the effects of global warming.

 

"Natural forests can store three times more carbon dioxide than reforested plantations," ESP president Antonio Claparols said, adding" if we really want to mitigate the effects of climate change all we really need to do is protect and conserve our natural forest and biodiversity as well as slow down on greenhouse gas emissions."

 

A recent study in Australia finds that "untouched natural forests store three times more carbon dioxide than previously estimated and 60 percent more than plantation forests" and that first-time "logging resulted in more than a 40 percent reduction in long-term carbon compared with unlogged forests."

 

"This is a confirmation that what we have been fighting for is true," Claparols said.

 

Rainforest act natural sinks for carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. They take up the carbon dioxide and release oxygen into the atmosphere.

 

"If we destroy our forests, we upset this balance. With lesser trees in the in the forests, the more carbon dioxide shall be left in the atmosphere, thus, less oxygen shall be released," Claparols said. "That is why we are calling on the government to stop logging our remaining natural forest and to protect and conserve them." He added.

 

 

 

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Amid meltdown, eco-systems on back burner again
WORLD leaders are aggressively seeking to find a fix to the global economic meltdown which appears to continue its dizzying freefall. 

The old economic models are not working; Are the IMF and World Bank formulas passe? Could it be time to go back to the old barter trade of comparative advantage?

 

What worries me more is that -- once again -- the environment has been put on the back burner.

 

With the Arctic Ice melting at an unprecedented scale and with most of the ice in the mountains facing a starkly similar future, it will no longer come as a surprise that ecosystems will begin their collapse.

 

Eerily, I see it as only a matter of time.

 

The ecosystems' benefits are estimated to yield over $47 trillion a year. These are basic benefits of:

  *clean air and water.

  *food, shelter and clothing.

  *marine species, which supply food protein of most people on Earth.

 

Dead zones in the oceans -- where the oxygen content is zero -- are growing. From the last count, there are now over 150 dead zones in our seas and oceans.

 

The growth of algae bloom has killed marine species. That means as the dead zones continue to increase; the oceans face the greater threat of losing their productivity and biodiversity.

 

There may come a time that they will yield neither any fish nor other marine species that are staple food for most of the Earth's inhabitants.

 

The Philippines is acknowledged as the home of the most diverse marine ecosystem, home of the Coral Triangle, and proud site of many diverse species, greater in their diversity than those of the Great Barrier Reefs of Australia.

 

The sad reality is our coral reefs are being lost to bleaching and effects of global warming.

 

Worse yet, our marine ecosystem are subjected and stressed out by destruction due to logging, trawling and over-fishing, not to mention the heavy tailings mining operations dump to the seas.

 

We only have one planet. We need to fix her up so we can continue to live.

 

We can always fix the economy by being frugal and less wasteful. With a new wave of economic models.

 

But we cannot fix our environment when our ecosystems begin to collapse on a massive scale. Our priorities must be focused.

 

Even the E.U. leadership has failed to commit on cuts on G.H.G. to abate global warming. The E.U. leadership must address this.

 

Looking inwardly at ourselves: we need to enhance our abatement efforts by going organic, by protecting our natural capital in which we are rich.

 

Or else, wait for ecosystem to collapse and have increased poverty and food and water shortages.

 

Good economics is a healthy environment.

 

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Corporate raid on conservation

(Antonio M. Claparols President of the Ecological Society of the Philippines)

I have been to many environmental congresses but never did I experience what happened at the Fourth World Conservation Congress in Barcelona.

At a time when the Earth is at its worse state and climate change is killing the planet and humankind, that Conservation Congress was a circus.

My first was the General Assembly of IUCN in Madrid in 1984, followed by Perth in 1990, Buenos Aires in 1993, Montreal in 1996 (where I was elected regional councilor), Amman (Jordon) in 2000 (where I was re-elected councilor for my last term), and Bangkok in 2004 (memorable for the resolution calling for a moratorium on GMOs). This was a victory for the conservation movement.

 

The Rio Summit was an authentic Earth Summit. Then things began to change.

 

In the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in 2002, 10 years after Rio, corporations first showed their presence.

 

There was a green wash as IUCN and Shell announced a partnership, which having been met by an outcry among the participants, was downgraded by the IUCN Council into a dialogue.

 

Just last year, however, a contract was signed between IUCN and Shell. Congress members, moving with outrage, put up in the wee hours a resolution calling for the termination of the contract. However, we were shaken to find out that everything had been orchestrated.

 

I have never seen a conservation congress where so many corporate representatives showed their wealth and power.

 

As the 10-day congress went into play, we gave the other side -- which had thought that it would be that easy -- a run for their money. Emotions were high.

 

The circus continued, as if unmindful that one fourth of every mammal is going extinct and one third of every amphibian is going extinct.

 

With all that was said and done at the many hours of meeting, the sleepless nights and the forging of new friendships, it can be said we won most of the controversial biodiversity resolutions until we came to the controversial biodiversity resolutions until we came to the contract with Shell.

 

When the vote came, the NGO house voted 70% for, the government house voted against, with 15 countries voting for. We had lost.

 

We were saddened by the vote, fearful of the effects to the environment. We did not think we could win anyway.

 

But a powerful message had been sent to all.

 

What gave us relief was that either party could terminate the contract after giving notice. And we had elected a good number of members to the council, giving us the numbers in time to do so. The battle has moved to the new members of IUCN.

 

Dr. Robert Goodland of the World Bank was vested the Dr. Harold Coolidge Award for his dedication to the environment.

 

The award was presented by former IUCN Director-General Dr. Lee Talbot, my good friend whom we were honored to be with at a 5-day safari of Kruger National Park and Blyed River Canyon in South Africa after the 5th World Parks Congress in Durban.

 

Dr. Talbot said Robert Goodland, while at the World Bank, pumped environment in every corner of the bank.

 

Then Dr. Talbot mentioned a critique on the extractive industries and told the congress that the real effects of climate change are far greater than those predicted by the UNIPCC and FAO, referring to the effects of destroying pristine forests as carbon sinks compared to reforested forests.

 

What made an even bigger impact was FAO's estimate of Greenhouse Gases from livestock, said to be even higher due to methane.

 

Dr. Goodland had co-authored and documented a 200-page report on mining in the Philippines, mentioning extrajudicial killings and destruction of biodiversity.

 

My mind and those of many others have shifted to the next Wilderness Congress in Yucatan (Mexico) where I expect participants like those in Anchorage (Alaska) in 2005 would be hard-core conservationists who love the wild and the wilderness.

 

All in all, we came out of the circus ahead, having echoed our say.

 

Good-bye Barcelona.

Long live the environmental movement.

All this in the worse economic crisis ever.

God help us to protect and conserve His creation.

 

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Campaign against GMOs launched

The ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) has joined the Network Opposed to Genetically Modified Organisms (NO2GMOs) in its campaign against harmful side of biotechnology.

 

In a forum hosted by NO2GMOs at Miriam College's Environmental Science Institute last Thursday, two co-founders of the Institute of Science in Society (ISIS) warned about the dangers of genetically modified crops.

 

"The biotech companies failed to prove, beyond reasonable doubts, that GMO's are safe," said Dr. Peter Saunders, who is also a professor of applied mathematics at King's College London. "They are trying to convince governments that it can solve a major problem safety and cheaply. We are told that we cannot feed the world without GM. But the truth is, GM crops are going to affect biodiversity and present risk to the environment and human health."

 

The international experts cited a recent finding of an independent group of possible health impacts of MON863, a genetically modified corn producing its own toxin to kill pests, which has been approved in 2003 in the Philippine and other countries.  A recent study failed to conclude that MON863 is a safe product.

"We have no time to waste, we have to move forward to organic farming." said Dr. Mae-Wan Ho. "GM crops are highly controversial and will not play a substantial role in addressing the challenges of climate change, loss of biodiversity, hunger and poverty."

 ESP president Antonio M. Claparols, for his part, has been urging the Philippine government to legislate and implement laws against GMOs.

 "We are fighting something big, and it needs our collective effort to win," ESP president Antonio Claparols. "That is why we are reiterating our call to the government to ban the importation of GM crops and prevent these from proliferating."

 Claparols said that ordinary consumers do not have the capacity to test the products they buy for GMOs because the method is very expensive. That is why, he said, it is the government's role to tell the people which products in the market are not safe for consumption. 

Atty. Lee Aruelo, coordinator of NO2GMOs, explained that the country only has a couple of regulations -- by the Department of Agriculture and the National Safety on Biosafety of the Philippines -- against GM crops but no law has been passed by Congress yet. 

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Genetic modification scored

 Genetic Modification is dangerours. 

This was stressed yesterday by Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) president Antonio M. Claparols. 

Claparols said a new genetics research has confirmed that genetically engineered crops crops can be harmful for human consumption. 

"That is why we Filipinos should promote organic farming and make sure that our children's children will have food on their table," Claparols said. "And besides, organic farming helps in mitigating the effect of global warming." 

Most European countries already have moratorium on the further use of genetically modified organisms, he pointed out. 

"Let us all be vigilant also and make sure that these genetically altered crops willl not penetrate the local market," Claparols added. "I also urge the government to patrol the market and apprehend smugglers." 

Claparols said that instead of importing crops, "the government must help and protect our organic farmers." 

"We have enough land to produce food to feed the entire Filipino nation," he said.

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Protect RP resources, NGO tells Filipinos

 The Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) is calling on the Filipinos to protect the country's natural resources to help fight poverty.

 "Our contry is so rich with natural resources and yet our people are going hungry and the poverty level has increased," said ESP president Antonio M. Claparols.

 The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has reported that 75 million more people became hungry in 2007 even as the World Bank has reported over a billion people worldwide live in poverty.

 "We believe it is more," Claparols added. "We are urging the Philippine government to address the food situation and eradicate poverty."

 Claparols said weather adn climate are key factors in agricultural productivity.

 "This is where ordinary people can do their share," he said. "Let us all stop polluting our environment. Let us all help preserve our terrestrial and marine resources so that our children will have food on their tables."

 Claparols added that the Philippine government, for its part, must also promote organic agriculture.

 Studies show that organic farming can help compensate for the greenhouse gas emissions.  Scientists also said it can outyield conventional agriculture methods by a factor of 1:3.

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Stop destroying forests

 The rainforest is a vital part of the earth's ecosystem. It is also a key factor in mitigating the effects of global warming, according to scienstists.

 But despite the warmings, forest areas all over the country are being threathened by timber poaching, fires adn rampant conversion of forest lands into agrigultural purposes.

 According to an article posted at Earthlymagazine.com.ph, the Cordillera office of teh Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) recently reported that the region is losing 317.78 hectares of forest every year. 

"This is an alarming rate," said Ecological Society of the Philippines (ESP) Antonio M. Claparols. "The Philipine government must do something... fast."

 Aside from rampant loss of flora and fauna, the rapid degradation of forests poses a serious threat to the availability of water in the Cordillera and other parts of Northern Luzon.

 Benguet has recorded the highest annual forest loss, which is 266.1 hectares or approximately 85 percent of the total devastated forest areas in the region. 

Some 29.66 hectares of forests and water sheds are converted into agricultural purposes every year, the DENR  data showed.

 "Preserving our remaining watersheds and forest is both a social and a political issue. We have to do our part just as the government has to play a bigger role in the protection of the environment," Claparols said. "If this happens in Cordillera, this can also happen in other parts of the country." 

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All roads lead to Barcelona

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

  AS I  write this, the city of New Orleans was spared, but four (4) more hurricanes are just behind. As of the last weekend. Hurricane lke barreled across a wide swatch of Texas, deluging the city of Galveston with a wall of water and leaving extensive damage across Houston.

 The Indian sub-continent is underwater.

 The entire globe, for that matter, is flooded. 

Are these signs of times to come?

 After all, only one percent (1%) of the oceans that make up over 75% percent of our planet is protected by law.

 Less than one percent (1%)

This must be increased by the World Parks as the Global Commons are vast and bountiful.

 

Yet, such are at risk of being destroyed.

 

Imagine all the ballasts: pollution, over-fishing, dumping of toxics.

 

Our richest ecosystems are being destroyed in silent waters.

 

These are some of the many issues that will be taken up in the Fourth World Conservation Congress in Barcelona this October.

 

The primary issue of climate change and the shortage of flood and water -- these will be paramount.

 

Today in the news, our country has a food shortage never experienced before.

 

Our water is running dry despite all the typhoons and a record Southwest Monsoon season.

 

The extractive industries will be represented in full force as they continue with their destructive ways.

 

The IUCN -- The World Conservation Union, the 60--year old union of over 1,000 members-- will debate many motions, some to be adopted, others to fall by the wayside.

 

The motions, once adopted, become an icon or message to all on how to conserve our dying planet.

 

There will be many participants and delegations worldwide, with both governments and NGOs represented.

 

Yes, there will be many participants.

 

Both sides will be fighting it out.

 

Those who want to conserve the biodiversity of the world.

 

There will be those who will demand their right to life on Earth with ample food and water.

 

There will be those who will demand for their rights to be recognized.

 

And there will yet be those who do not care at all.

 

Imagine all this is in the 21st century.

 

What is sure is that, with vigilance and resolve, the good will prevail -- as all roads lead to Barcelona in October

 

 

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Our planet is dying and who cares?

 

As I write this, frantic New Orleans residents are being hurriedly and mandatorily evacuated out of the exotic U.S. city, preparing for the arrival of Hurricane Gustav, which the New Orleans city mayor called "the storm of the century" -- being larger and more dangerous than Hurricane Katrina that severely flooded the metropolis three years ago.

Only a few days ago Typhoon Karen wrecked havoc not only in our beautiful country but in a highly urbanized city such as Hong Kong. The fury that it unleashed is testament of worse things to come.

 

I am being asked: How can a "mere typhoon" destroy concrete jungles?

 

Hurricane Katrina demolished New Orleans -- a city I have always wanted to see. And in a day the city had gone under.

 

Now, New Orleans City Mayor Ray Nagin, apparently regretting keenly the lack of preparation for Katrina, -- paid for dearly -- has been pleading with his constituents to "get our or face enormous flooding adn life-threatening winds."

 

Anxiously saying it all. Mayor Nagin said in a televised news friefing: "This is the mother of all storms, and I am not sure we've seen anything like it. For everyone thinking they can ride this storm out, I have news for you: that will be one of the biggest mistakes you can make in your life."

 

First Katrina, now Gustav. Other waves and trends will continue as long as we do not change our ways.

 

We need to give back to Mother Nature what we have gotten from her.

 

We need to reforest, rest, rehabilitate and ehhance our biodiversity.

 

Brazil, the largest carbon Sink forest on Earth, is under siege as well.

 

What other forests do we have left?

 

Our very own Sierra Madre forest, Mt. Kanlaon, Mt. Apo, Mt Kitanlad and all our mountains are being destroyed.

 

Our forests continue to be logged over. Where is the law in this entire deluge?

 

The environment of the dazzling Beijing Olympics is a sign of things to come.

 

Ten thousands (10,000) athletes played amid heavy pollution.

 

You tell me after that humongous display of resources, the Chinese economic machines are being planned for a slowdown?

 

That remains to be seen. Au contraire, the Chinese economy will go full scale in production.

 

After all, the sleeping giant has awakened.

 

The Gobi desert is near the outskirts of Beiging. The deserts are alive and are expanding.

 

This expansion needs to be under contro; take the fight to them with forests and water. With biodiversity in its fullness.

 

Let it not be said that we did not raise the alarm; what good are all the economic gains?

 

What good are the Games:

-- if all they really want to do is produce and consume?

-- if what it amounts to is to destroy our Earth that sustains our life?

 

Let me go back to the polyps that build coral reefs that make London look like a town.

 

I have never met species so hard working.

 

Everyone is working -- building their coral palaces that feed the world's species, humankind included.

    Let us protect our seas.

    Let us learn from what polyps do.

    Le us changeour ways and start moving towards protecting the only planet we have.

    Let us feed our people.

    Meet the U.N. Millennium Development Goals.

All I hear and see is a lot of words and summits.

 

Our planet is dying.

And it seems no one really cares.

 

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Gov't urged to protect marine ecosystem

 

The Ecological society of the Philippines (ESP) is reiterating its call on the Philippine government and teh private sector to take action on the shortage of food and water and the effects of global warming.

 

"At the rate that we are going we will feel the catastriphic effect of the food crisis and the water shortage sooner than we think," said ESP president Antonio M. Claparols. "Global warming has caused this problem to escalate. Already our coral reefs are bleaching making the last bastion of food in our rich seas depleted."

 

According to Claparols, the Philippines is rich in marine biodiversity. But it some parts of the globe, marine resources are being killed and destroyed by global warming.

 

"Soon we will be deprived of the rich marine resources to supply our people with food and livelihoods. We will experience an ecological disaster that we have never seen before," warned Claparols. "That is why we are calling on government and the private sector to protect the environment. And stop ecosystems from collapsing."

 

A recent study finds rising global temperatures impacting ocean ecosystems to a far greater extent than previously acknowledged. Among the most disturbing news is research suggesting Pacific salmon may no longer find suitable habitat in the Pacific Ocean. Other effects of warming climate are appearing across the marine food chain. from plankton, penguins and polar bears to fisheries on which humans depend.

 

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Ecological time bomb ticking faster

 

 

AS I write this, the Earth's global carbon footprint has reached over fifty million tons (50,000,000). This is no joke.

 

The planet is dying and we can feel the effects of the climate change.

 

The United States is on fire and burning as the Americans wait for the hurricane season to come.

 

Europe is in a heat wave and is facing an unpredictable weather.

 

Switzerland, the cleanest and greenest country in the world, is suffering from a heat wave.

 

Africa is dying and geting worse.

 

The Arctic ice is melting and with it all the changes in the atmosphere, biosphere and ecosystems.

 

The life of the planet is in grave danger.

 

 

Yet, economic forces are still raking it in, with little or no concern over the state of the environment.

 

The role of forests in carbon storage is crucial.

 

The IPCC has identified teh need for forests based mitigation analyses that account natural variability, use primary data and provide reliable baseline carbon accounts.

 

In response, the Wilderness Society of Australia conducted one of the few large-scale studies of the carbon stocks of intact natural forests.

 

The Society used a case study of 15 million Eucalypt forests in Southeastern Australia.

 

The main result from the study is the default IPCC value for temperate forests -- grossly underestimating by ten (10) times the carbon stock of Australias temperate forests.

 

The result is of global significance because it is very likely that the IPCC default values also underestimate the carbon stock of other natural forests, including tropical forests.

 

Therefore, the total stock of carbon that can be stored in the 15 million hectares of Eucalypt forests, if undisturbed by intensive human activity, is around 10 billion tons and not one (1) billion tons.

 

This shows the importance of protecting our pristine virgin forests.

 

They sequester more carbon than planted for forest.

 

We must protect our forests and stop emissions of greenhouse gases.

 

We started our concern for the environment in the 1970s.

 

We did not learn it in school as no one was teaching it.

 

We learned it underwater, measuring coral growth and taking photos.

 

We cataloged every dive and recorded species of coral and marine species seen.

 

The year was 1975 when then President Marcos issued P.D. 1219, the ban on coral harvesting. It was a good law, but no one followed it.

 

What did we do? With the help of Tom Garrett of the Animal Welfare Institute in Washinton, DC, and former Senator Warren Magnusson, we lobbied in the U.S capital and what we knew as P.D. 1219 turned into the Black Bass and Lacey Acts, signed into law by President Ronald Reagan. It was a great victory for us -- Philippines coral, for sale as decor,  had found its way from New York to Paris.

 

That same year, coral was placed as part of CITES Convention. For many of us then, it was sweet victory.

 

However, as with other environmental laws, with the passage of time , exploitation resumed and destruction has gone virtually unchecked.

 

Sustainable development has longer been viable.

 

Planet Earth can not take any more beatings.

 

Forests are still being felled.

 

The seas are being over-fished.

 

Our coral reefs are being devastated.

 

Meanwhile, we wait for the ecological time bomb to explode.

 

Already, it is ticking faster.

 

 

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Nature has its rights

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

 

 

The Constitutional Assembly of Ecuador sent out a very stirring message -- one that optimistically could help change the world.

 

The 130-member Constitutional Assembly voted to re-write the Ecuadorian Constitution to include the Rights of Nature.

 

This South American country, home of the famed Galapagos Island and many indigenous peoples, has voted unanimously to protect the Rights of Nature and her Ecosystems. This is a milestone for the world in the light of the state of the environment today.

 

A am particularly proud of the Ecuadorian people for spearheading this landmark grant by the fundamental law of their land to recognize the Rights of Nature.

 

For once in our lifetime, the people of Ecuador have given priority to the Environment and its ecosystem services.

 

Article 1 affirms that Nature or Pachamama is where life is reproduced and that Nature exists, persists, maintains and regenerates itsels through its vital cycles.

 

This signal piece of constitutional amendment should send a clear and reverberating signal to the entire world that we in pact can aggresively protect the Planet and the Rights of Nature to survive and flourish as well as provide the people of the Planet a safe, sustainable life.

 

The constitutional framers of Ecuador raise our common if desparate hope that their action would establish a precedent that other nations and peoples of the globe would follow fearlessly, coming as the Ecuadorians' action does in this age of global warming and climate change:

 * In this era of looming food shortages and spiraling costs of energy.

 * At this time when the Planet and the world are succumbing to the pressures of ecosystems collapse and of floods, droughts and ecological disasters.

There is thus a glimmer of hope that this legislation may be followed and given support because it will help revive our dying environment.

 

The time for old economics must be reviewed and changed.

 

Such approaches are no longer relevant.

 

Just note the collapse of many countries which have faced shortages of food and energy.

 

The time for subsidizing food and energy must stop.

 

The time is ripe for new ways to save the planet.

 

The time is in for renewable energy sources that are clean and abundant.

 

The time is in for new technology for hybrid, electric and hydrogen cars.

 

We must learn from the mistakes of empires long ago which  have gone extinct simply because they chose policies and directions which were not sustainable.

 

Let us learn from such collapsed empires so we can pass on a better world to our children.

 

Humankind has to act and save the Planet.

 

Men, women, children and all species have the right to a healthy and clean environment.

 

The laws of God and Man demand observance of such rights.

 

We are left with no recourse.

 

We speak not only of humankind but also of all species that live on Earth.

 

Nature, the mother of all Life on Earth, has rights too.

 

I join the exuberant people of Ecuador in wishing the members of their Constitutional Assembly long life and continued power.

 

Long live Ecuador's people!

 

From where i stand, I call upon all vigilant peoples to learn from them and all together let us give back the RIGHTS OF NATURE.

 

 

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Filipinos urged to act on global warming

 

The recent food crisis and natural calamities such as food, drought and the unusual change in rainfall amount and pattern have been blamed on the global warming phenomenon.

 

"It is a problem the entire world is facing that is why all of us must work together to solve it," said Ecological Society of the Philippines president Antonio M. Claparols. "This will continue and will eventually get worse. That is why we need to act now."

 

Claparols reiterates his call on the Philippine government to take the initial steps and lead the entire Filipino nation in abating the effects of climate change.

 

"We must change our ways on consumption and reduce our carbon footprint by promoting clean renewable alternatives such as biomass, wind and solar energies," he said. "We need to stop polluting our environment."

 

Claparols also suggested the government must spearhead the drive to plant more trees and protect the remaining rainforests. This will help prevent soil erosion and heavy floods like the one that devastated Iloilo thre weeks ago.

 

 

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Our Earth is not for sale

 

With all the environmental catastrophes facing us and the planet -- floods, droughts, typhoons, food and water shortages, pollution of our marine environment, species, extinction, harvesting of our coral reefs, logging of our forests, ecosystems' collapse -- it seems the message that Mother Nature is sending us is not taken seriously.

 

It seems that economic material benefits are more important than the welfare of the planet that sustains life.

 

The many calls for environmental protection and conservation are not heard or are really not in the drawing board.

 

What matters more to many world leaders is unwarranted possesion of military power to control the world.

 

Don't they know that over one billion people live below the poverty line?

 

Don't they know that the entire world is suffering from a food crisis and an energy crisis?

 

The solutions are there. And spelled out by many.

 

The UNIPCC has put up a roadmap on how to fight global warming.

 

Many scientists all over the world have echoed the same sentiment.

 

How many more people would have to die?

 

How many more countries will have to suffer?

 

Have they not seen what Darfur, Sudan is like?

 

Have they not learned from the many countries whose people have changed their governments because of lack of food to eat and water to drink?

 

Each day the economic bubble has seen the collapse of many big corporations, affecting many smaller ones.

 

What are they waiting for? "For more people to die from floods and droughts?

 

All one has to do is see what happened to many empires in the past which, having faced environmental destruction, came to the end of their race.

 

The book Collapse by Jared Diamond says it all.

 

Jared mentions the loss of the Polynesian race and how Easter Island came to be.  He mentioned the sate of Montana (U.S.A.) which had once upon a time supplied most of the mineral needs of the United States and which not has over 20,000 abandoned mines.

 

He speaks of the destruction done by mining.

 

He Speaks of the island of HIspaniola which is controlled by two countries the Dominican Republic  and Haiti -- and how their policy  differences have changed the environment of the island.

 

He speaks of the great Mayan Empire which was so advanced that its people even had brain surgery at a time when the West was in the Dark Ages.

 

Why can't we learn from history  so that we won't repeat the mistakes of the past?

 

Clearly, those who do not learn from history are dammed to repeat it.

 

In many of the global forums, it seems that economic matters rank top priority.

 

It is as if planet Earth is up for sale to the highest bidders.

 

We are not on the auction block.

 

Our planet is not for sale. The global commons are owned by no one. They are owned by everyone.

 

We must remember that we are all citizens of the Earth. We are her custodians and must protect her.

 

If not, then the end of the planet that gives us life is near.

 

The choice is simple: do we want to die?

 

One thing sure is that we will all die -- unless we all act in concert now.

 

Let us not destroy our planet. It is not for sale.

 

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Environmentalist pushes total log ban

 

"Deforestation causes massive floods, landslides, erosion, and global warming. Let us not add to the problem but prevent the worst from happening while we still can."

 

This was stressed yesterday by Ecological Society of of the Philippines (ESP) president Antonio M. Claparols who is calling on the Philippines government to enforce total log ban and launch a massive reforestation program.

 

Claparols, a serious environmentalist, said, " Without trees, a greater proportion of rain water reaches the lower ground from the mountain causing havoc to the economy and the people's way of life. But more than the physical destruction brought about by deforestation, its consequences are adding to the woes of climate change."

 

"We must understand that rainforests create a sink for carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Rainforests help the atmosphere balance the variety of gases, the good and the bad ones, ensuring life of Earth. With less trees to moderate these  so-called harmful greenhouse gases, temperature on Earth will gradually increase adn the ecosystem would be disrupted," Claparols explained.

 

]"Forests are the lungs of the Earth. The forest inhales carbon dioxide and exhales oxygen. A healthy forest enhances our biodiversity and assures food security adn environmental security."

 

Claparols added that there is enough laws, such as Executive Order 318 (Promoting Sustainable Forest Management in the Philippines), to protect the country's forest lands.

 

"All we need to do is to enforce the law," he said. "There must be a total log ban."

 

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More Summits, no action

by: Antonio M. Claparols

President Ecological Society of the Philippines

 

The latest g-8 summit in Hokaido, Japan was testimony of the global crisis on food and oil and worse, the effects of global warming.

 

Global warming will continue to take its toll but with more severe impacts. The environment is dying and humankind as well.

 

What puzzles me most is that the economy seems to be getting more attention than global warming.

 

Don't they know that there will be no economics if we have an ecological disaster? Don't they know that the markets are collapsing, insurance claims  are increasing. droughts and flash floods will continue with more bengeance than before?

 

Why do they concentrate on the economy and the price of oil? Don't they realize these are the culprits that accelerate the destruction of the planet?

 

The G-8 leaders must put aside economic gains and military dominance and concentrate more on how to win the war against global warming and climate change.

 

As I write this, the country gone through strong and unpredictable typhoons.

 

The sinking of a large inter-island vessel claimed more than 700 lives and added toxic wastes into our last frontier -- our rich seas that provide us with food and livelihoods.

 

Now they say the fishermen cannot  go fishing in their own waters. What will they do? What will they eat?

 

The Philippine seas are all inter-connected. One toxic spill will enter the food chain and gulf streams and will destroy all marine life.

 

There goes our food security and the end of our last rich and abundant ecosystem.

 

The pronouncements made by the government are not enough. They should combat global warming and get our dependency on oil.

 

We should plant lots of trees and protect our remaining virgin forests. We should enhance our biodiversity and change our consumption patterns. We must slow down development and go into sustainable use. We must plant organic foods to feed our people and fight global warming.

 

The World Bank has pledged $US10 billion to environmental projects. This is a mere drop in the bucket. Two overpriced Nuclear Power Plants like the BNPP cost more.  The World Bank must increase aid to combat global warming and monitor the development.

 

The G8 must lead the way.

 

Even if they fail to do so, the private sector and all individuals must do their share.  The UNIPCC and A1 Gore's Inconvenient Truth has said it all.  All we need to do is follow the plan.

 

There are many new alternative renewable sources of energy. There are new clean vehicles. The technology has been there since the mid-1980.

 

It was all shelved by the oil companies and the few multinational and transnational corporations for their own profits.  Greed will destroy their market and the planet as well.

 

We do not have the luxury of time. The planet is dying.

 

The economy must be in the back burner and the environment put up front.

 

The leaders of the G8 must know this.  They know economics.  They studied Thomas Malthus who said that when population grows, the environment will get destroyed and there will be a shortage of food. Why did they not heed his call?

 

Ecosystem benefits as per the UNEP are over US $48 trillion. That's the basics to sustain life on Earth. Clean air, water and food for man and other  species.

 

Each day we destroy our natural capital, we run out of the basics for life provided by healthy ecosystems.

 

It is time to step on the brakes for large developments that pollute and start going back to the basics.

 

We have ourselves transformed a mountain farm into a forest. It took more than 30 years but it is a healthy carbon sink. Filed with fruits and biodiversity.

 

The rest of the world must do their share.

 

Now the Earth is in peril and the people as well. Yet, more summits are scheduled with no commitments.

 

For humankind to survive, we all must do what we need to do.

 

 

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'We have enough food to feed ourselves'

 

Scientists all over the world are pointing at global warming as the main culprit in the looming food crisis in many parts of the globe.

 

"That is