A Letter to the Local Government

As El Niño continues to strengthen in our country, we should be aware that global warming is indeed present not only in our country, but in the whole world. In our country global warming affects us in a way that summer seemed to be happening during mid March instead of the usual late March until early April. In addition, the top places locals visit during summer such as Baguio and Tagaytay does not become much enticing as the temperature is actually warmer compared before. Other effects of Global Warming would be that the soils in the farming is drying up easily, thus the drought in the country's crop which might lead with a shortage of food crops. If Global Warming cannot be prevented, plants, animals and even human could die for various diseases due to the heat stroke.

If we keep on taking for granted the gradual effects of global warming, we might end up suffering the effects and we hope that the damages will not be passed on to the future generations. So upon reading Dr. Nereus Acosta, presidential adviser for Environmental Protection, general manager of the Laguna Lake Development Authority, and the principal author of the Clean Air Act, here are some thoughts he ned that I think could also be applied in relation with our gradual experience of Global Warming.^[1]

1. There's No Economy Without Ecology

Since companies or governments aim for profit, we should put in mind that we should protect the foundation of all the profits that we have - the environment. Without the natural resources that the environment has given to us (e.g. land, air, water), there would be no profit in the first place for these corporations. It should be taken note that if we do not allocate or utilize our resources properly, little would we know that it would be harder for us to recover something that has been damaged already.

2. Metro Manila Is Fast Losing Its Green Areas

According to Acosta, there are only few green areas left such as the Arroceros Forest Park, Veterans Memorial Medical Center, etc. around Metro Manila. As the saying goes, the more trees that are being chopped off, the more carbon dioxide the plants can no longer be absorbed in the air and the lesser oxygen we could inhale. That is why it is said that living in the province is better as these green areas provide clean air for the residents in there, so converting these green areas in Metro Manila in exchange for more property would not be a good idea especially that the area of Metro Manila is already congested with traffic, which cause more pollution in the air. Wouldn't be nice if we get the coolness of an area because the trees protect us from shade and not exerting effort or putting an artificial air just for us to be comfortable?

3. Metro Manila is very vulnerable to natural calamities

By chopping off trees in exchange of building more properties, we are placing ourselves in danger. Because of the effects of Global Warming, we already experienced the consequence in Metro Manila such as Typhoon Ondoy and the Typhoon Pedring caused the sea walls of Manila Bay to crash. Shouldn't this be our wake-up call already that one of the most lauded areas in the Metro Manila cannot overcome the effects of these typhoons?

I know that our country still have hope for a change in a positive way, we can start treating the remaining green areas in the Metro Manila like an endangered place in which we should preserve what's remaining of it. Instead of planting trees outside the metro, it would be possible to do it in the metro even if almost all land are converted to concrete. There is still a way to somewhat improve the air condition of Metro Manila.

Even if it is a long shot, with the group effort and discipline of all the people involved, we can make a positive change for the community so that we can pass it on to the younger generations.

Footnote:

^[1] 6 Ecological Issues That Affect Real Estate of Metro Manila