Loren: Holy Week also time to reflect on state of environment

Holy Week should also be a time for Filipinos to reflect on the state of the environment, Sen. Loren Legarda said Tuesday.

“As we celebrate this year’s Earth Day, which coincides with the Holy Week, we must rekindle our relationship with nature," said Legarda in a statement. “As stewards of God’s creation, let us reflect on how we treat the benefits we receive from our natural resources."

Legarda, who chairs the Senate climate change committee, said Filipinos do not need to wait for another natural disaster to understand the “sad state" of the Philippine environment. She said Filipinos should strive to save the country’s natural resources by recycling and saving on fuel, energy, and water consumption.

“Let us all work, in our own and simple yet big and determined steps to help resuscitate our ailing environment," she said.

Earth Consciousness Day -- On the other hand, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago filed Senate Bill No. 2752, which seeks to make every first day of the month “Earth Consciousness Day" in the Philippines.

“This bill will require the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Department of Education (DepEd), along with other stakeholders, to provide information, coordination, and support services to public and private entities in ensuring a systematic and lasting effort of protecting the environment," Santiago said in her exploratory note.

Under the proposed legislation, the heads of government agencies, local government units, employers, and their employees shall be required to organize and participate in activities designed to raise public awareness on the state of the environment.

The DENR and DepEd shall likewise be tasked to lead schools in organizing "conscious-raising" activities on the need to protect the environment while primary and secondary schools shall be required to plant at least one seedling during earth consciousness days.

By Kimberly Jane Tan