Oldest living tree

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Earth Day walk and a hop

I walked my way to the office yesterday to fulfill one of the suggestions I made on what-to-do to mark Earth Day.

It took me almost an hour to cover about five kilometers from my home at Matina to the City Council. I left shortly before 8 and was at the session hall in time for its opening.

It was a worthy walk for a worthy cause in calling attention to help Mother Earth fight abuse.

Coming down from GSIS Heights, my walk was immediately noticed by curios onlookers. Many who recognized me must have asked themselves why was a City Councilor walking and not riding on his way downtown.

Along MacArthur Highway, it became obvious to me the stench of vehicle smoke that has polluted our city. Vehicles of all types whisked by me as I descended the Sabungan area down to the old Venees Hotel.

Something was terribly wrong with our vehicle emission tests. Many vehicles that were inching their way up to Matina opposite my way to the city were belching black smoke.

My disappointment was quickly forgotten when I reached Karasia. It has no vehicle on display. Not a single car or truck to sell?!! I thought to myself this was a victory in our efforts to lessen polluters in our streets.

After Tulip Drive, as I passed by the rows of establishments from the Baptist Church to the old Palayok Restaurant, I recalled efforts in the past by the Matina Barangay Council to develop the front of this area into a park. It is presently used as a park indeed, but as a parking lot, including one by a van terminal.

Our city needs more parks with trees to help fight global warming.

A new gas station just opened near the Albay Compound. I chuckled when I noticed the coconut juice vendor in front of it had four customers lining up; the gas station had only one.

At the Davao City Water District office, the old Coca-Cola bottling plant, a banner proclaimed April as “environment month.” It is one of the most active entities in the city advocating for the environment, particularly protecting our water resources.

As I was crossing the narrow street after the DCWD, an old truck sped my way to turn right. It forced me to hop for a safer distance. It was the only hop I made in this hour-long walk.

Traffic started to build up as I progressed in front of the NCCC Mall. On occasion, my pace was faster than some vehicles picking up passengers. I motioned to a number of them to walk.

I made my first stop in front of the Ateneo de Davao Grade School. Teachers near its gate recognized me. I told them I was walking my way to the office to mark Earth Day. They clapped and cheered me on!

I made my second stop at No. 77 MacArthur Highway, in front of the University of Mindanao.

I saw a taxi stopped in front of it and its passenger dropped off two sacks. I immediately know that they contained metal scraps. Three other fellows were lining up in this place to sell their metal scraps.

This junk yard does a very good job in collecting metal wastes, and recycling most of it. Our staff at the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) and barangay officials should study why our Material Recovery Facilities (MRF) are a big failure when private scrap metal yards like this are making a killing.

I went on to pass the busiest of this long stretch of the highway – the Sandawa Junction just before the Bankerohan Bridge. Near it, a security-conscious policeman caused my third stop. He greeted me good morning and asked why I walking alone without a bodyguard in tow. I replied that I was walking for Earth Day and added that I do not have a bodyguard.

At the bridge, I was lucky to chance upon two sand barges at the Davao River with people cleaning up to commemorate this Earth Day. I waved at them, wondering whether anyone of them recognized me.

I made my fourth stop at the old Coop Bank along Magallanes when a group waiting for some jeepney greeted me with “Nganong nagbaktas man ka Konsehal?” I again explained to them my day’s mission.

In front of the Grand Men Seng Hotel, I made my fifth stop to buy fried sweet potato. As the world grapples with galloping prices of food, here I am holding three sticks of what could be one of the solutions to world hunger.

I gave my thumbs up to the vendor who placed the sweet potato on a paper bag. Little did he know that this was a big thing for me! One of the ideas I listed in my what-to-do list today was to avoid using plastic bags!

No one seemed to notice me as I approached the final leg of my walk. At the City Hall grounds, no one surprisingly greeted me. However, as I walked near the City Council building, a group of television crew and photojournalists were waiting for one of the “news” of the day.

Seeing them indeed made my day. I know that this walk, a single step in “a journey of a thousand miles,” was a “giant leap for mankind.”

Earth Day clean-up

City Administrator Wendel Avisado is organizing two activities for the 38th Earth Day celebration:

Tree-planting at Eden, Toril on April 19; and

Coastal clean-up on April 22.

City Hall employees, members of the armed forces and civil society groups are expected to participate to help mark Earth Day with the theme “Tubig at Buhay, ating Pagyamanin at Linisin”

More suggestions

Here are additional suggestions on what-to-do on Earth Day next week:

7) Recycle bond papers by using the other side for printing;

‘ Do not use our laptops during the session;

9) Minimize the use of paper by limiting the circulation of documents during the session;

10) No softdrinks please;

11) Drink tap water instead of bottled water

(7:20 p.m.)

Earth Day

The celebration of Earth Day on April 22 falls on a Tuesday, our City Council session day.

So, I am forwarding this suggestion to my colleagues to help mark this worldwide event:

1) Walk or bike our way to the office;

2) Minimize the use of electricity on the SP Building;

3) Give priority to pending proposals on environment, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, among others during our deliberations;

4) Allow civil society groups to use the SP lobby for Earth Day activities;

5) Serve organic food during our lunch break; and

6) Avoid the use of any plastics or non-biodegradable materials;

Any more suggestion?

(5:35 a.m.)

Sinking Manila

I am flying to Manila today for the Philippine Councilors’ League convention. The Davao City delegation will stay at the old Philippine Plaza by the Manila Bay.

This would give me a close look to check the story that Manila is sinking. Scientific studies trace the “sinking” to the drying up of ground water.

In a privilege speech I delivered September 25 last year at the City Council, I asked the opposite. Could Manila be not sinking but rather the Manila Bay is rising?

One consequence of global warming is clear … tides are rising and will sink lowlying islands like those in the South Pacific, Indian Ocean and in the archipelagic nations of Indonesia and the Philippines.

(3:27 a.m.)

Davao and the World Ocean Conference

After its successful hosting of the international Climate Change Summit in Bali last year, Indonesia will again host one of the world’s biggest environmental conferences next year – the World Ocean Conference in Manado, North Sulawesi on May 11-15, 2009.

Davao City should take advantage of this very important event and cash in on its ripple effects across the Celebes Sea.

One, Manado is a sister-city of Davao and we should extend our assistance to it in hosting this conference.

Second, Davao may be considered as the “northern gateway” to Manado. North Sulawesi’s Sam Ratulangi Airport can be reached through Jakarta and Bali to its south, via Singapore to its west and Davao to the north.

Thousands of participants to the conference - heads of states, top scientists and academicians, environmentalists, NGOs, media, etc. will be flying to Manado. Davao can offer itself as its northern passage. By then, Davao has direct flights from Hongkong and Taipei (Cebu Pacific) which could play as the hub for participants flying in from Europe, north Asia and North America.

Third, there would be plenty of opportunities for pre and post conference activities around the month of May. Davao can hold or host a number of these to take advantage of the presence of eminent personalities.

Davao can also offer special tours and exposure trips to the participants to the city showcasing its best practices in marine conservation like the turtle sanctuary, mangrove forest, and the Davao Gulf Development initiative.

Fourth, an ambitious event could be the holding of a sort of Davao-Manado Yacht Race or Davao-Manado fluvial parade in time of the opening of the conference. The Celebes Sea is the future Caribbean and a Davao-Manado cruise trip could be developed out of this idea.

I propose that the city take advantage of this big event. It would be a coming out party for Manado, and we should not miss this opportunity to play a supporting role.

(8:29 a.m.)

Slap in the face

This is a clear slap in the face of the Malacanang occupant.

Three local government executives vowed to promote the conservation of Mt. Apo and protect its watershed and indigenous communities, clearly opposite the Palace’s idea of converting portions of the sacred mountain into a “special economic zone.”

Related posts:

Business Mirror

Ecozone at Mt. Apo?

(5:38 a.m.)

Rising of the seas

I gave a privilege speech at the City Council yesterday on the rising of the seas as a result of climate change. Please read it at my pbwiki.

I closed the speech with: The world leaders are currently doing their jobs in New York; we should do ours here. Now! 

(2:57 a.m.)

Sinag in solar car race

Oil prices jumped again to new highs yesterday. For the nth time we are again jolted to our senses on the urgent need to find alternatives to fossil fuel.

When I founded the Davao Green EAGLES (Energy Alternatives for Green Living and Economic Sustainability) in October 2005 (no offense for the pun to both Ateneo and La Salle), I thought people were resolved already in starting to give up on fossil fuel as it skyrocketed over $70 per barrel. Well, oil now costs more than $80 and the more we should accelerate finding and using alternative energy.

Unfortunately, we are slow on acting with no less than the national government having little political will except on the passage of the Biofuels Act.

Yet, there are plenty of other alternatives we should work on such as biomass, solar, wind, geothermal, etc.

I am particularly elated that finally on its 20th edition, a Philippine team is entered in the world famous World Solar Car Challenge in Australia on October 21-28. Our entry is the Sinag solar car from the Dela Salle University.

A Davaoeno, Isidro “Ingco” Marfori, is among the members of the team. He is the youngest son of our family friends Ding and Sylvia Marfori.

I wrote about this solar car race in my blog last year when Iran, an oil producing nation, took part in the race except that their vehicle got lost in the transit from Iran via Dubai.

A team from Latin America is also taking part for the first time. An entry by Chilean students is called Eolian which is made of wood, solar panels and an electric motor.

A 1996 movie, Race the Sun, immortalized the inspiring participation of the US team from Hawaii during the 1990 solar car race Down Under.

Update September 22 - Comment from visitor led us to this site on the South African Solar Car race in 2008. 

Business Mirror

My stand on the special economic zone at Mt Apo is the subject of today’s editorial at the national broadsheet Business Mirror -Another haphazardly conceived “incentive.”

(11:31 a.m.)

Ecozone in Mt. Apo?

With direct foreign investments down 16% during the first half of the year, the national government is devising new schemes to attract more business.

This particular idea is absurd.

Upon arrival in Davao City from the APEC Summit Down Under yesterday, the President signed an Executive Order declaring geothermal areas in the country as “special economic zones.” Through this, government expects to attract power-intensive industries like, prominently mentioned was electronics, but I personally suspect, mining.

One of these geothermal areas is Mt. Apo, which is a sacred place; far from any airport and seaport, not to count the peace and order problem.

Who would locate in such a place?

Moreover, this EO runs counter to environmental laws, preservation of lumad culture and in conflict with ancentral domain claims by cultural communities in the area.

Malacanang should rethink this strategy. The day the EO was signed in Davao, the Mayor of Kidapawan was invited to attend a seminar in Yosemite Park in California on natural park conservation and the Regional Development Council of Southern Mindanao affirming its resolution for the preservation of Mt. Apo Protected Areas (Mindanao Daily Mirror).

Here is a clear case of the right hand of government not knowing what the left hand is doing.

(7:37 a.m.)

Palm oil

The 5th National Palm Oil Congress was held in Davao during the weekend. I delivered the welcome remarks in behalf of Mayor Rody Duterte.

In my brief talk, I cited the growing importance of palm oil not only for domestic and industrial uses but as a source of biodiesel, an alternative fuel.

But I emphasized that expanding palm oil plantations must consider its social and environmental impacts.

Indonesia is poised to become the world’s top palm oil producer but at what price.

I remember the problems besetting Agusan del Sur when the first palm oil plantations were created during the 1970s at the height of martial law. Whole communities were displaced, many people, including lumads, lost their lands to a Malaysian company backed by the military regime under President Ferdinand Marcos.

Many people were arrested, tortured, massacred in the ensuing protests. Accounts of these were featured in the book Mindanao: The Bleeding Land, published by the human rights group Task Force Detainees of the Philippines.

(4:57 a.m.)

Walk for clean air

At about this time, the walk for clean air in Davao City must be underway from Freedom Park to Magsaysay Park.
Sorry that I cannot join the fun. At least four groups were I belong are joining - Clean Air Davao Coalition, Davao Green EAGLES (Energy Alternatives for Green Living & Economic Sustainability), Dabaw Kaisa Foundation, and the Ateneo de Davao clean air team led by Kristine Omar.

Godspeed to all participants! (6:11 a.m.)

Tap water

About two months ago, I wrote in my old blog how my wife, Evelyn, had been pondering that we stop the delivery of bottled water in the house.

She said she wants us to drink tap water again. Not because bottled water costs a lot but because she said tap water is much better than those “mineral waters.”

Well, it has been two weeks since we stopped the delivery of bottled water. And things are fine so far. We did not miss bottled water a bit.

Here is one reason my wife was absolutely correct. (11:45 a.m.)