Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III has underscored the key role that local government units (LGUs) should perform in transforming the country’s most congested cities into walkable, pedestrian-friendly communities through the creation of green, safe and comfortable public spaces in their respective localities.
The national government and LGUs can begin this effort by helping buy back land that can be converted into green spaces for urban dwellers, Dominguez said.
He lauded the core convenors of the Green EDSA Movement led by Eduardo Yap for setting the example for LGUs and other sectors by spearheading the “green” makeover of EDSA, which was launched this morning to coincide with the global celebration of Earth Day.
“I wish this Movement success in this brave effort to make EDSA a greener and therefore a kinder place for our people. May this be a shining example of an empowered people’s initiative to build a sustainable and healthier future for our country,” Dominguez said during the virtual launching held via Zoom.
Alongside the greening of EDSA is an Asian Development Bank (ADB)-supported project to help build safe and disaster-resilient elevated walkways for pedestrians along this thoroughfare, Dominguez said.
“This is an auspicious start to convert our congested urban centers into walkable, pedestrian-safe cities. It will complement our efforts to fight climate change by encouraging people to use their cars less, thus reducing greenhouse gas emissions,” he said.
Dominguez noted that weak governance, which resulted to the private appropriation of public spaces, including the sidewalks, has left Metro Manila seriously starved for green spaces and pedestrian unfriendly.
The Green EDSA Movement can do more if it expands its reach and its civic initiative is replicated in other parts of the country, Dominguez said.
“We can, for instance, help buy back land to create green spaces for our urban dwellers. The local governments of our most congested cities have a key role to play here,” he said.
As chairperson-designate of the Climate Change Commission (CCC), Dominguez said he will work hard to pursue state policies that are not just sustainable but regenerative as well.
Dominguez cited, for instance, his strong support for new legislation that will ban single-use plastics as a major step to encourage every Filipino to do his or her part on a daily basis in helping save the world’s environment.
“We hope that you can help us push forward this important bill in Congress,” he told those present at the launching of the Green EDSA Movement.
The Philippines submitted on April 15 its first National Determined Contribution (NDC) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as part of its commitment to the Paris Agreement.
The NDC sets a 75-percent greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction and avoidance by 2030, or higher than the 70-percent conditional GHG targeted cut submitted in 2015.
Of the 75-percent target, 72.29 percent is “conditional” or contingent upon the support of climate finance, technologies and capacity development, which shall be provided by developed countries, as prescribed by the Paris Agreement on climate change.
The remaining 2.71 percent is “unconditional” or shall be implemented mainly through domestic resources.
The NDCs of countries that are signatories to the Paris Agreement collectively aim to keep the Earth’s temperature within 1.5 degrees from pre-industrial levels, which Dominguez described as “the greatest challenge of our time, far more complex than the pandemic.”
“As I have said on many occasions, I am determined to make the Philippines a world leader in mitigating the impact of climate change. Through our NDC, we hope to urge other countries to act with determination and cohesion to save the only planet we have,” he said.
The Philippines only accounts for 0.3 percent of global carbon emissions, yet it is among highly vulnerable countries that bear the brunt of the consequences of global warming as it sits on the typhoon belt and the Pacific Ring of Fire.
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