The shear line has been dominating national and local weather reports in recent days as the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) predicts rainfall, thunderstorms, flooding, and even landslides in various parts of the country. In a forecast report released at 4 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 20, Pagasa said the shear line could...
Category: Environment
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Mangroves offer refuge from climate risk to Sorsogon folk, whale sharks
DONSOL, Sorsogon—On his day off from his two jobs last November, after two strong typhoons battered the Bicol region including this coastal town popular among tourists eager for an “encounter” with whale sharks, Antolin Cuelana queued for relief goods at the basketball court in Barangay Ogod. The queue in Ogod, the largest barangay in Donsol,...
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Fishermen dive for sunken coal as clean-up resumes
SAN SALVADOR ISLAND, Zambales—At first glance, 60-year-old Fernando Avilla looked like he had been spearfishing for some time as he rested with his gear in his wooden boat. It was not fish in his net though but bits of coal he had retrieved underwater. Avila and most fishermen on San Salvador Island off Masinloc, Zambales,...
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Locals clean up coal spill in Zambales fish sanctuary
MASINLOC, Zambales—As leader of the San Salvador Biodiversity Friendly Association, Edna Sarmiento is committed to conservation projects such as planting mangroves, monitoring environmental violations, and pushing cleanups in the Masinloc-Oyon Bay Protected Seascape and Landscape (MOBPLS). This is why Sarmiento and her group were gravely alarmed when, last Oct. 24, a barge carrying more than...
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Environmental damage feared after coal barge runs aground in Zambales fish sanctuary
MASINLOC, Zambales—Local residents are worried about a marine disaster after a barge carrying more than 11,000 metric tons (MT) of coal ran aground last week in a fish sanctuary within a government-declared protected seascape off this town. Nestor Dait, 67, the chair of the Bantay Dagat civilian volunteer group in Masinloc, said the barge Katapatan...
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‘Mangrove Warriors’ take up the conservation challenge in a Batangas village
A thick belt of mangroves spans over one kilometer of shoreline at Barangay Quilitisan in Calatagan, Batangas. Across from the mainland lies the mangrove-covered islet Ang Pulo. The 7.5-hectare Ang Pulo was declared a municipal conservation park in 2009, giving way for the preservation of mangroves in the area. It was also opened to ecotourism...
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The demise of coal, as it turns out, is a lot of gas
A few years ago, the world was on a path to ending coal, the most carbon-intensive fossil fuel and the single biggest contributor to carbon dioxide emissions. Active and sustained campaigning brought coal closer to the point of death and the world to a coal-free future. Certain developments made this evident. One, the shrinking of...
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Filipino fishers continue to struggle amid China’s intensifying aggression
SAN SALVADOR ISLAND—With a piece of chalk, Christopher de Vera Sr. marked the sketch of a triangle-shaped Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal on the board, labeling the entrance in the east and pointing out where Chinese vessels are often seen on patrol. Laughter filled the venue of the meeting, a classroom of San Salvador High School in...
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Drought now ‘an emergency situation,’ peasant group leader says
To survive the monthslong dry spell, indigenous peoples in Barangay Pilar, South Upi, Maguindanao del Sur, have resorted to eating wild yam. As a result, 15 families were poisoned. In the forests of Barangay Nalkan, Datu Blah T. Sinsuat, Maguindanao del Norte, water sources are drying up, forcing children to trek hilly, landslide-prone areas to...
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Save your pets in this extreme weather
“If it’s too hot for you, it’s too hot for your pet.” That’s a general rule that Anna Cabrera, executive director of the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), wishes to relay to those who are worrying about the wellbeing of their pets in the extreme heat currently being experienced nationwide. The temperature is not expected...