Zubiri appeals for serious talks on Climate Change
Majority Leader pushes for RP carbon neutral technology

Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri today appealed for serious government, private and public discussion on the issue of Climate Change as he called for active participation in the campaign against global warming.

Zubiri's appeal came following the devastation wreaked by typhoons "Ondoy" and "Pepeng" that hit the country just one week apart from each other.

The Majority Leader said: "The Philippines had seen and witnessed its vulnerability after 80 percent of Metro Manila was submerged into floodwaters due to heavy rainfalls brought by typhoon "Ondoy."

Zubiri urged government agencies concerned not to wait for the repeat of a similar disaster that could again claim the lives of hundreds of Filipinos and cause injuries and massive relocation of several coastal communities in Metro Manila and nearby provinces, before taking decisive action to mitigate the effects of climate change.

He stressed the recent catastrophe should serve as a wake up call to all. "We had known the recent flood of epic proportions in Metro Manila and nearby provinces coming! We've been sufficiently warned about the effects of climate," he said.

The Majority Leader likewise urged the Department of Energy, Science and Technology, and Transportation and Communications, among others, to assist in the campaign to increase the level of awareness of the Filipino people against the proliferation of carbon.

"We should be a nation pushing for carbon negative or carbon neutral technology," he said.

Carbon negative is the process of removing carbon from the atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere.

Recent study suggest that fossil fuels and feedstock in transportation, space heating industry and power generation can be substituted with biomass.

By combining the technology of carbon capture storage with biomass applications, carbon negative strategy could be achieved especially in this critical time that the Philippines is in the brink of crossing dangerous climatic tipping point, Zubiri said.