THE Senate has adopted a resolution concurring in the Accession to the Paris Agreement that seeks to limit the average global temperature to “well below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.”
Senator Loren Legarda, chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on the Paris Agreement under the Committee on Foreign Relations, said the Philippines’ ratification of the agreement would send a strong signal of the country’s continuing commitment to work with the rest of the world in ensuring the survival of mankind.
“Our nation bears the brunt of climate change even if we are among those who contributed the least to the crisis,” Legarda said.
The Embassy of France in the Philippines, meanwhile, lauded the senators for the ratification of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, joining 133 other countries to double renewable energy and reduce energy intensity by 45 percent over the next two decades.
The Statement was made after the lawmakers approved on third reading its concurrence to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, voting unanimously 22-0 in adopting Senate Resolution 320.
“We congratulates the Philippine government and the Philippine Senate for the ratification of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change,” the French embassy said in a statement.
Since France is a major contributor to the Green Climate Fund, the embassy said the ratification of the Climate Change pact would open new perspectives for both Paris and Manila to develop and implement sustainable solutions towards a greener, more sustainable future for the planet.
The embassy said this development coincided with the 70th year anniversary of French-Philippine diplomatic relations.
Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said he voted yes to the ratification of the treaty which he considers the earth’s survival manual.
It is a declaration that the species that live together in this fragile planet shall not perish, he said.
“I am voting yes because a hundred years from now, when the vibrant voices in this chamber have become faint echoes of the past, I do not want this place to be remembered with a buoy which states that here lies in 30 feet of water the remains of the building that once housed the Senate of the Philippines,” said Recto.
Senator Cynthia A. Villar said the Senate ratification of the Paris Agreement was a victory for the agriculture, the sector most affected by climate change.
She said the Philippines, as an agricultural country, loses billions worth of crops and farming facilities from the onslaught of typhoons, “which have become stronger and more frequent in our time.” She added: “Prolonged dry spells have also wreak havoc to the livelihood of farmers and fisherfolks, further worsening the condition of our country’s poorest.
“By joining the global action to cut carbon emissions, we will be able to address agricultural woes which continue to hurt our farmers’ productivity and our food security goals.”
As chairperson of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food and the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, Villar vowed to support measures that would strengthen the country’s ability to mitigate the effects of climate change to vulnerable sectors, including the passage of the bill giving insurance protection to farmers.
Sen. Sonny Angara said it was imperative “that we respond to these real changes together amid a lot of opposition, pushing and pulling on the science, the virtue, and the business of the world’s response to climate change.”
Sen. Win Gatchalian said the environment was the common heritage of humanity such that its preservation was a solemn trust, shared by the entire human race.
Within this context, he noted that each member of the international community “should be compelled by our collective conscience to do what is necessary to fulfill this trust, so that future generations of all peoples may share in the ecological wealth of the Earth.”
Under the agreement, developed countries have agreed to continue their obligations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to provide for financial assistance to developing countries with respect to both climate change mitigation and adaptation.
According to the agreement, emissions reduction or programs for adaptation would be nationally-determined and voluntary.
Legards said the Paris Agreement was a vehicle towards achieving climate justice as it compelled developed nations that have polluted the world and caused this climate crisis to finance the Green Climate Fund and provide developing and vulnerable nations, like the Philippines, needed support on capacity building and technology transfer for adaptation and mitigation efforts.
“This means that our vulnerability presents opportunities for green, sustainable and resilient growth,” Legarda said.
“Pursuing a development path consistent with 1.5 degrees will not only protect our people and the environment, it will also spur economic growth. Ratifying the Paris Agreement is a vital step towards dealing with climate risks and delivering our commitments for sustainable growth,” she added.
A study conducted by Climate Central scientists and statisticians showed that climate change “is on track to be much warmer.”
According to the study, the average global temperature change for the first three months of 2016 was 1.48 degrees Celsius or almost the 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold agreed upon by global leaders during a meeting last December.
February exceeded the 1.5 degrees Celsius target at 1.55 degrees Celsius, marking it as the first time the global average temperature had surpassed the agreed upon threshold in any month.
March checked in at 1.5 degrees Celsius while January’s mark of 1.4 degrees Celsius put the global average temperature change from early industrial levels for the first three months of 2016 at 1.48 degrees Celsius, according to experts.