Dispatches from Mindanao

Editor's Note: Below are 2 stories from the South. Climate Change is not just about another Ondoy in Metro Manila, it's effects are felt throughout the country.

RP faces water shortage by 2020
by Nicole J. Managbanag, Sun Star Cagayan de Oro
August 24, 2010

THE country will reportedly experience a greater risk of water shortage in 2020 as the impact of climate change worsens.

Renato Redentor Constantino, executive director of the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC), said to avert this, there is a need for the people in the community to develop an advocacy program on climate change mitigation and adaptation and disaster reduction and management.

Constantino said local legislators in the country must take an active role in planning for mitigation and adaptation programs against climate change.

"They must look deep into the problem and find practical solutions to address climate change," Constantino said during a press conference on climate change held over the weekend.

He said several countries have been giving pledges to the Philippines to help fund projects related to climate change mitigation.

However, he said pledges are just pledges, virtually written on water.

"It is not a question of aid or charity but on how long will the rich countries would give their pledges to help the Philippines. Yes, it is good that there are many pledges, but these are not enough. Many of these pledges have gone through the wrong institutions and in the wrong mode," Constantino said.

He said to fund any mitigating measure, the Philippine government must create a National Survival Fund to make the country more "self-reliant and resilient."

He said a National Survival Committee must be created that would serve as a channel for funding and must be open to the public to make it "corruption-proof."

"Since this is a very big fund coming from local sources in our country, it must require development of adaptation needs and investments database," Constantino said.

He said the government must be transparent to avoid corruption by "retooling" the budget process and must do a lot of "participatory, multi-stakeholder and multi-level governance."

"The essence of this fund is to ensure long-term, predictable funding support to also promote direct access modality and democratizes access to finance," he added.

In two weeks time, Constantino said Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile will file a National Survival Agenda at the Senate.

He said if this agenda will push through, "we will no longer be like beggars asking for alms from rich countries."

"The good thing about having our own funds is to accelerate interface between vulnerability-mapping and mobilization of domestic and foreign adaptation finance, based on vulnerability registers and leadership indicators," Constantino said.

But in the meantime that the survival fund is not yet visible, Constantino called on the people to use practical measures to help reduce climate change, especially in Cagayan de Oro where residents are used to a door-to-door delivery.

"One must practice walking to minimize the use of fossil fuel," he said.

He added pollution is the main issue in the country and that the people must find ways on how to stop pollution such as looking for other alternative ways to minimize the use of fuels that can contribute much on climate change.

Published in the Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro newspaper on August 24, 2010.

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Billion dollar loans for climate change ‘unjust’
by BenCyrus G. Ellorin for MindaNews
August 22, 2010

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY –  A climate change activist yesterday exposed as “unjust” the government’s over a billion US dollar loan supposedly for “climate change adaptation and mitigation.”

Red Constantino, Executive Director of the Institute of Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) told reporters here Saturday that the Climate Change Commission (CCC) under Commissioner Heherson T. Alvarez and the previous administration should be held liable.
Data coming from the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) revealed that the Philippines loaned a total of U$586,592,639.00 for climate change adaptation compared to the grants it got of only U$369,847,995.00.

For climate change mitigation, the country borrowed U$491,635,179.00 bringing to a total of U$1,078,227,818.00 loans related to climate change.

“Climate change finance is not an issue of foreign aid, but an issue of compensation,” said Constantino in pointing out that getting loans from multilateral banks like the World Bank for climate change is wrong.

The Philippines as a developing country is considered a carbon-neutral country as its emission of climate changing greenhouse gases is minimal compared to developed countries.

Carbon emission from developed countries is the cause of the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere and is blamed for the increase in global temperature.

Impact of climate change to countries like the Philippine is the occurrence of more severe and more frequent extreme weather events like typhoons and droughts.

“We are victimized by these loans twice or thrice over, eh. Parang sinunogan na tayo ng bahay, at pagkatapos, yung nagsunog ng ating bahay magpapa-utang sa atin ng pera para ibili natin ng bigas at damit” (It’s like our houses were burned. Then those who burned our house will lend us money to buy rice and clothes), Constantino said.

Climate adaptation refers to any climate change intervention that capacitates the people to adapt and be resilient to extreme weather events brought by climate change.

Climate mitigation directly addresses the source of climate change, which is the reduction of carbon emission, especially from developed country.

Currently, the US, China and Europe are the biggest emitters of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.

“Climate adaptation is an issue of justice, we are the victims here, and we should be compensated and should not be made to pay for defective loans which eat up a significant portion of our national budget which is already being drained by huge debt servicing,” Constantino emphasized.

“Wa na man gani ta nalipay kay ilang giguba ang atong planeta og malipay na lang gani unta nga makadawat og salbabida aron di ta malumos, dili gyud makatarunganon nga ila pa tang ipabayad sa ilang hinabang kanato” (We are not happy that they destroyed our planet. We would have been happy to receive a lifesaver from them so we won’t drown. It is not just that they will make us pay for their supposed help to us),  said Oliver Egypto, Executive Director of Partners Inc. which organized the media briefing last Saturday.

Cagayan de Oro is considered as one of the climate change-vulnerable areas in the country. Last year was recorded as the wettest year in at least the last 30 years. In 2009, Cagayan de Oro was battered by floods in the first two weeks of January. Another round of heavy flooding  hit the city in November.

Dengue fever, a vector-borne disease is also occurring at very alarming rates in Northern Mindanao and has already claimed at least 11 lives this year. The increase in the dengue cases according to health authorities has reached about 230%.

Climate scientists have predicted the rise of vector-borne diseases due to climate change.

Vectors are animals, usually insects that transmit viruses, bacteria and worms when biting their prey. The mosquito Aedes aegypti transmits the Dengue virus. It is a day-time feeding insect.

Photo of sunset in barge to Iligan by Reina/iCSC