Environmental groups on Tuesday called on President Duterte to honor the country’s commitment to reduce carbon emissions under the Paris climate deal.
They expressed fears that President Duterte’s policy pronouncement would pave the way for a status quo on the country’s energy-mix policy direction, which leans heavily in favor of coal-fired power-plant projects rather than renewable energy (RE).
While former President Benigno S. Aquino III was credited for calling for a comprehensive review of the country’s energy-mix policy through the Climate Change Commission (CCC) during his last few months in office, he was strongly criticized during most of his six-year term for his pro-coal policy.
“The Climate Reality Project Philippines, together with other civil-society organizations, is willing to sit down with the new administration to discuss the comprehensiveness of the Philippine climate position and the Paris Agreement. With the President’s seemingly constant view on fairness, there is a need for him to deeply understand our fight for loss and damage vis-á-vis our carbon-emissions cap commitment,” said Rodne R. Galicha, Philippine manager of the Climate Reality Project.
While Mr. Duterte recognizes the reality of climate change, “he [President Duterte] may need to understand the context of the processes of the climate talks and our nationally determined contribution in the light of common but differentiated responsibility,” he added.
As chairman of the CCC, Galicha said, Mr. Duterte should convene the whole climate body together with the National Panel of Technical Experts, if necessary, to address his concerns and issues.
“Fairness and justice in climate action can be attained in making countries historically responsible to the climate crisis accountable while vulnerable countries, like the Philippines, collectively commit to reduce carbon emissions in light of their national circumstances without compromising the ability of future generations to survive.
Galicha said the country cannot afford to commit the same mistake committed by developed countries “responsible to huge emissions…and [if] our country becomes an accomplice to future deaths and destructions…coming [from] more powerful Yolandas.”
Meanwhile, Kalikasan-People’s Network for the Environment (Kalikasan-PNE) welcomes President Duterte’s demand for greater responsibility from top polluter countries to cut their carbon emissions.
However, Clemente Bautista, the group’s national coordinator, said the country’s aspirations for national industrialization can be fulfilled with the general prescription of the Paris climate deal to reduce fossil-fuel consumption.
“President Duterte correctly points out that the Paris Agreement has failed to impose much-needed deep and drastic carbon-emission cuts on advanced capitalist nations, such as the United States, European Union, Japan and China, which are the biggest contributors to global warming-inducing carbon emissions,” Bautista pointed out.
Such leniency by the Paris Agreement for polluter countries, he added, is unjustly noncommensurate to its impositions on low-carbon but climate-vulnerable countries, like the Philippines.
“In our pursuit of national industrialization, we hope President Duterte notes that the further aggressive expansionism of coal-fired power plants, among the biggest sources of carbon emissions in the country, will actually be counter-productive. Coal-power pollution will inflict massive environmental and health costs upon its surrounding communities,” Bautista said.
The establishment of coal-fired power plants, he added, will not only result to increasing pollution and health hazards, but perpetuate the country’s dependency on imported fossil fuel and technology.
“Our renewable and indigenous energy resources, such as hydro, geothermal, solar and natural gas, are more than enough to provide our energy needs now and in the future,” he said.
Nevertheless, Bautista challenged the Duterte administration to assert the “principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities in the upcoming COP 22 [22nd Conference of Parties] climate talks to uphold our nation’s right to develop and demand greater emission cuts from the top polluters.”
“A critical step that President Duterte must pursue toward a propeople, pro-environment energy policy is the reversal of energy privatization under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act. Last, our assertion will be on stronger ground if Duterte can demonstrate leadership by example through a moratorium on new coal-fired power plants,” he added.
Denise Fontanilla, energy policy advocacy consultant of the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities, a policy group promoting low-carbon development initiatives in vulnerable countries, said even the Philippines has its fair share of climate action to do.
“The initial pledge of the Philippines last year may be 70-percent emissions reduction by 2030, but this is conditional on aid. We must continue demanding climate finance but also do what we already can on our own—like cancelling all pending coal plants,” she stressed.
Chuck Baclagon of 350.org East Asia, the country also has its own fair share of 70-percent- emission reductions under its intended nationally determined contribution, which it has been submitted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
“It is of vital importance that the Philippines keep its commitment not only because it’s already submitted to the UNFCCC, but more so because it is among the most vulnerable countries. Our country’s failure to take the necessary steps to reduce emissions sends a clear signal that reinforces the current inaction of developed countries to do their fair share,” he stressed.
Gerry Arances, Convener for the Center for Energy, Ecology and Development, noted that in his dialogue with the Green Thumb Coalition, President Duterte had responded positively to drastically reducing emissions and shifting to more sustainable RE resources.
“Development need not be dirty. The 200,000-MW projected capacity of renewable energy is more than enough to sustain the needs of the Philippines for an even more sustainable development path than what industrialized countries have followed before,” Arances said.
Arances emphasized that, in spite of President Duterte’s bold statements against the Paris climate deal, positive developments are gradually unfolding under his administration, including the ongoing energy review of proposed and existing coal-fired power plants in the country, and the audit of mining operations across the country spearheaded by President Duterte’s Environment Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez.
“Rather than follow in the footsteps of climate hypocrites, we must walk our talk in terms of our contribution to combat climate change while pursuing our need for a more sustainable, cleaner and people-centered development path,” Arances said.
4 comments
I would hope that these views expressed by environmental groups are not driven by business interests that merely want to cash in on the possible windfall profits of green technology and renewable energy to the determine of cheaper alternatives like coal which are actually acceptable so long as they use clean coal technology. Let’s call a spade a spade and let these groups not pretend to be all-noble environmentalists when they are actually just greedy capitalists.
First give aid to bring the price of electricity down for the consumers…. then lets talk against DU30….or else bugger off, you puppets of the West. The West became rich by stepping on their colonies and now they once again want to suppress us. BUGGER OFF.
They should offer a viable alternative., not the unreliable wind, solar and rain sourced electricity., the west should provide cheap loan for LNG terminal or nuclear power plant construction.. we want affordable, stable power supply for our business and homes.
https://www.moneycontrol.com/video/current-affairs/paris-climate-deal-does-nothingclimate-justice-amitav-ghosh_7088601.html