‘Much still has to be done’ to mitigate, adapt to climate change — Legarda

(FILE) Senate President Pro-Tempore Loren Legarda (Voltaire F. Domingo/Senate PRIB)

MANILA, Philippines— Unlike the United States, the Philippines still has a “long way to go” to mitigate and adapt to climate change, according to Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda.

Legarda, a known staunch environment advocate, pointed this out after U.S. President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act, which is seen to cut greenhouse gas emissions and lower prescription drug prices and high inflation.

“I commend U.S. President Joe Biden for signing into law legislation addressing climate change,” she said in a statement Wednesday.

In the Philippines, Legarda pointed out that there are already laws for climate change mitigation and adaptation like the Climate Change Act and its amendatory law or the People’s Survival Fund (PSF).

With a P1 billion annual allocation, the PSF could be used to help communities and ecosystems cope with the impacts of climate change, the senator explained.

Despite this, Legarda lamented that “much still has to be done.”

“We still have a long way to go in climate mitigation, and adaptation. [So] much still has to be done,” said the senator.

Legarda, though, noted that other measures have also been passed “in pursuit of climate change mitigation and adaptation.”

Among these are the Philippine Environmental Impact Statement System, Marine Pollution Control law, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, Renewable Energy Act, and Environmental Awareness and Education Act.

“The effective implementation of these [is] vital to the country’s sustainable growth and development,” she stressed.

/MUF/abc