DENR, LGUs told to focus on climate change mitigation

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) must come up with plans to enhance local efforts to mitigate climate change, according to President Marcos, who had described the problem as “the most pressing existential challenge of our time.”

Climate change mitigation at the local level was discussed during Marcos’ meeting with the Philippine delegation to the 28th Session of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28) at Malacañang.

“He (Marcos) issues a directive to the DENR and all concerned agencies to prioritize addressing... specific local environmental issues first, emphasizing that breaking down specific plans to improve climate change mitigation efforts at a local level would benefit the country as a whole,” the Radio Television Malacañang (RTVM) said in a Facebook post.

“He also suggests providing guidance and assistance to areas that require it with support from various LGUs (local government units) across different sectors,” it added.

In a statement, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said Marcos instructed agencies to focus on high-risk regions in the implementation of the National Adaptation Plan and to conduct an aggressive information campaign to raise awareness about it.

The National Adaptation Plan seeks to steadily lessen climate-related loss and damage and build the Philippines’ capacity toward transformative adaptation, resilience and sustainable economic development by 2050.

“It’s a big, big (task). This covers three decades and the entire country. It’s a completely different situation when it comes to climate change... I think that’s the approach that we should take. We have to try and work our way down through the system – the economic system – so that we can address the specific situations, the specific conditions (of each area),” Marcos was quoted by the PCO statement as saying.

COP28 was held from Nov. 30 to Dec. 12 in Dubai.

The creation of a loss and damage fund that would support climate change-related projects was approved during the summit, a development described by the UN Climate Change as the “beginning of the end of the fossil fuel