Posted on 28 September
2011 On a hellish September week two years
ago, millions of Filipinos were literally
up to their necks in misery. Typhoon
Ondoy, labelled by Philippine Atmospheric,
Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration
(PAGASA) spokesman Nathaniel Cruz as a 'possible
manifestation of climate change', brought
Metro Manila its highest amount of rainfall
in the past 42 years.
It took the lives of
246 people but taught survivors and the
country a crucial lesson – climate change
is real and lives lost will be part of the
tally of its costs.
“Climate change shall continue even if we
stop all our carbon emissions tomorrow.
It takes 40 years for its momentum to grind
to a halt. Given this, what should we do?”
asks WWF-Philippines Climate Change Director
Gia Ibay. “The solution lies in Climate
Adaptation – preparing for pronounced climate
change effects by adjusting the way we run
our businesses and live our lives.”
Since September 2010, the WWF and Bank of
the Philippine Islands (BPI) have been conducting
intensive baseline studies to help Philippine
cities adapt to climate change. WWF and
BPI’s Business Risk Assessment and Adaptation
Study covers four cities at risk from increased
storms, floods, drought and other extreme
climate events – Davao, Cebu, Iloilo and
Baguio.
The study combines baseline
data findings with stakeholder inputs from
scenario-building exercises conducted per
site and shall form the basis for each city’s
localized adaptation strategy. More studies
may soon cover other Philippine cities.
Climate-proofing
WWF recommends revamping and ‘climate-proofing’
local infrastructure – moving coastal roads
and communities to higher ground, improving
community drainage systems and investing
in natural solutions like mangrove forests
to parry inbound storms.
WWF-Philippines Vice-Chair
and CEO Jose Ma. Lorenzo Tan said, “Climate
adaptation is a phenomenal business opportunity:
after Typhoon Ondoy, land-developers started
offering flood-proof townhouses and condotel
units. They are thinking ahead – and this
saves money.”
WWF says that though revamping infrastructure
may cost millions today, it will cost tens
of billions 50 years down the line. By thinking
ahead, market leaders secure the profitability
necessary for business sustainability.
Meeting climate change head-on
Hundreds of guests attended the four stakeholder
workshops, the last one being completed
in Baguio City on 21 September. Stakeholder
feedback was largely positive. Pepito Capuli
from the Davao City Disaster Risk Reduction
Management Council said “The activity gave
me new insights in giving emphasis on climate
change preparations.”
BPI Foundation Executive Director Florendo
Maranan said, “This is our way of helping
partner communities adapt to the coming
storm. In one scenario, we see the country
losing space, food and water. In another,
we see our countrymen meeting climate change
head-on.”
In 2009, WWF launched The Coral Triangle
and Climate Change: Ecosystems, People and
Societies at Risk – a report based on a
thorough consideration of the climate biology,
economics and social characteristics of
the immediate environs of the Philippines
– showing how unchecked climate change will
ultimately undermine and destroy local ecosystems
and livelihoods.
Vulnerable to climate change
The Philippines has one of the longest non-continuous
coastlines in the world which makes it especially
vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
Warming temperatures might force up to 30
per cent of all known species into extinction.
It is also situated within an area that
is vulnerable to increasingly violent storms.
“Imagine the sea inexorably
creeping inland to submerge farms and homes.
Heavier droughts will suck our soil dry
to desiccate our rice and sugarcane fields.
Hotter days will drive people up mountain
communities like Baguio”, warned Tan. “Remember
that even if you live in a climate-proof
area – people from afflicted cities will
run to you.”
“We must act today to create safe and livable
cities tomorrow. There’s only one thing
better than dreaming of a climate-proof
community – and that’s building it.”
