A forum on the government’s Project
Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards (NOAH), Earthquake Preparedness
and the National Greening Program (NGP) was held today at the Ecology Center
Compound in Diliman, Quezon City.
Participated by city environment and natural resources officers (CENRO)
as well as disaster management unit officers in Metro Manila’s local government
units (lgus), the forum aims to educate city officials on earthquake
preparedness given the existence of the West Valley Fault traversing certain
areas in Metro Manila; as well as in the use of the DOST-created application/
website named Project NOAH as an early warning tool for typhoon preparedness which aims to assist the
public in disaster prevention.
The forum also aims to give a
background to the participants on the government’s National Greening Program or
the Executive Order 26 which aims to plant some 1.5
Billion trees for a period of six years (2011-2016), and the harmonizing of
this initiative in Metro Manila.
Among the invited resource speaker in the forum
is Mr. Jeffrey Perez, Supervising Science Research Specialist of the Philippine
Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PhiVolcs), who discussed the possibility
of a strong earthquake in Metro Manila with the existence of the West Valley
Fault, as well as other calamities caused by the country’s geographic and
geologic setting.
He said that certain areas in Metro Manila such
as Quezon City, Marikina, Makati, Pasig, Taguig, and Muntinlupa would be
directly affected with the West Valley Fault traversing the said areas.
Mr. Oscar Victor Lizardo, Chief Science
Research Specialist from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), gave
an overview of the tool Project NOAH which provides for an accurate,
integrated, and responsive disaster prevention and mitigation system,
especially in high-risk areas in the Philippines.
He discussed the
different warning signals that could be seen in the tool, which could serve as
guide to the public in identifying disaster-prone and/or calamity-affected
areas.
Regional Technical
Director Antonio C. Manila presented implementing activities of the various
LGUs in the National Capital Region (NCR) in compliance of the National
Greening Program.
The forum is a joint
project of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR-NCR) and
the Philippine Information Agency-National capital Region (PIA-NCR) in response
to the growing threat of climate change which affects the world today.
DENR-NCR Regional
Executive Director Lourdes Wagan in her welcome remarks said that the activities
(including the said forum) that would be implemented by PIA and NCR are all
climate change mitigation and adaptation activities that would help the public
prepare for disasters brought about by climate change.
PIA-NCR Regional
Director Riza J. Baldoria in her keynote speech said that the forum is among
the series of activities to be implemented by DENR and PIA as part of the
national and regional campaign for climate change adaptation and mitigation.
The project is a
product of the memorandum of agreement (MOA) signed by DENR Secretary Ramon
J.P. Paje and Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO)- PIA
Secretary Sonny Coloma which provides for a partnership between the two said
agencies in the campaign of climate change adaptation and mitigation.
RD Baldoria said that
the different activities lined up throughout the year which include various
fora, mural painting, AVP launch, Puppet Theater presentation, social
mobilization activities such as “Happy birthday, Tree, Youth Camp, among
others, would provide for the necessary information to shed light on climate
change as a product of human activities.
She said that while
these activities would educate the public, these are also aimed at making the
people realize the role they have to play to address climate change, as they
are guided by the campaign’s battlecry “Pabago-bago na ang panahon, panahon na
para magbago.”
She ended her speech
by leaving a quote which aptly summarizes the reality about the man and the
environment: “The earth doesn’t belong to man; Man belongs to Earth. Whatever
befalls the earth befalls the sons and daughters of the earth.”
