Remembering Typhoon Yolanda and the Fight Against Climate Change

It has been six years since Super Typhoon Haiyan (locally known as Yolanda) ravaged Visayas, yet many still feel the devastation caused by what is still the strongest cyclone ever recorded.

In memory of all the victims, the House of Representatives approved the bill declaring every November 8 as “Yolanda Commemoration day” in Tacloban City - the city most heavily affected by the disaster.

The bill filed by House Majority Leader and Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez and his wife, Tingog Sinirangan partylist Rep. Yedda Marie Romualdez also aims to give gratitude to those volunteers and organizations that helped in rehabilitating the communities affected by the catastrophic disaster in 2013.

Looking back, typhoon Yolanda took nearly 6,000 lives, destroyed a million homes, and damaged about nine billion pesos worth of infrastructure according to a situational report by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

Today, many Filipinos are still haunted by the effects of climate change. According to the Global Peace Index 2019, the Philippines is the country most vulnerable to hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, tropical cyclones and drought. Every year, an average of 20 tropical cyclones enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

As global warming worsens, more people are encouraged to take part in addressing this problem by lessening the buildup of greenhouse gases contributed by transportation use, electricity generation, industrial processes, agricultural livestock and manure, and landfills of waste.

In response to climate change, President Duterte signed the Paris Climate deal which mandates countries to keep their temperature level below two degrees Celsius. The current administration has also been taking steps to clean up tourism sites such as the trash-riddled Boracay Island.

Despite its actions however, the government’s full commitment to mitigate environmental issues remains questionable. Under the 2019 National Budget, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources is ranked as a government agency with the third lowest budget.

In May, President Duterte called climate change conferences a “waste of time and money” because of its ineffectiveness due to the lack of entities enforcing climate laws.

The Philippines isn’t the only one experiencing extreme climate change and disasters; the whole world is too. According to a recent report by the Washington Post, 11,258 scientists in 153 different countries declared that the whole planet is experiencing a ‘climate emergency’.

With that in mind, more people should be aware about the effects of climate change. It has been reported that Italy will become the first country that requires every grade school student to study climate change and sustainability.

As we remember Typhoon Yolanda, it is hoped that the government is intensifying its work in fighting climate change and protecting the environment. And as citizens, the challenge lies by taking part in fighting the negative effects of climate change.