Environment and Politics in the Philippines

The government has no comprehensive contingency plan for the projected long drought estimated to last for six months. Concerned agencies and sectors in the government should come up with a very specific plan that both covers the "domestic household" and agriculture sectors in light of a possible water crisis.

Malacanang ordered the reactivation of the Task Force and set aside billion of pesos to agricultural sectors and it will be used to fund various livelihood programs in areas affected by the long drought.

The government should also focus on water supply for domestic use such as for drinking, cleaning that will have adverse health effects on many families especially in the urban areas such as Manila and Cebu.

Concerned agencies must submit their contingency plans and made it public as some areas in our country were already felt the effect of the El Nino phenomenon.

We need political will of the government to implement contigency program and actions to soften the impact of the long drought.

Plastic-Styro Recycling Facility

The St. Paul University of Dumaguete (Department of Science and Technology) is the only school in the (Region Seven - Central Visayas) with Styrofor Waste Recycling Facility. This facility will be used for two years allowing the neighboring schools to bring their used styrofor to SPUD and have them recycled into floor tiles. This facility is safe and ecologically friendly and will surely answer many of the community's waste disposal problems.

The SPUD was also awarded 1st place in the Regional Search for the Most Sustainable and Eco-Friendly school all over Region VII.

SPUD introduced several environmental programs. As a result of their initiatives, the school shall serve as the center from which neighboring public schools can gain some training on how the programs can be implemented. It also give enviromental trainings to all sectors in the community that are interested in the program especially in the area of Solid Waste Management.

The school's Eco-Solid Waste Reduction Management (ECO-SWARM) consists of different committees such as: Education and Livelihood, Monitoring and Evaluating, Research and Innovation, Communication and Documentation, and Collection and Segregation.

Mabuhay to all the members of the Paulinian Community.

How to Protect Our Mother Earth

There are several government agencies especially the non-government organizations sectors worlwide involved in the preservation of our mother earth. Many programs were already in placed and some were being introduced in the schools, in our community centers and a lot of these were posted in the internet.

But as a concerned individual or group, what do you think you may contribute to make our mother earth a better place to live in especially for the next generation.