Commission on Climate Change Commissioner (left) and Baguio City Mayor Ben Magalong (r)
BAGUIO CITY, Benguet — Moving on to fulfill the initiative to reach out to local government units (LGUs) across the country to push for immediate climate action, Climate Change Commissioner Albert Dela Cruz Sr. visited Baguio City to collaborate with the LGU in implementing adaptation and mitigation measures to respond to the impacts of climate change.
Commissioner Dela Cruz met with the City of Pines mayor Benjamin ‘Benjie’ Magalong to discuss Baguio’s local climate change action plan (LCCAP) to address climate-induced disasters and advocate the utilization of waste-to-energy (WtE) technologies as a solution to the city’s waste problems.
He explained to the mayor the importance of these measures to promote sustainable and ecological development as espoused by no less than President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. in his administration’s national climate change action plan (NCCAP).
The climate official likewise noted to Magalong the former stature of Baguio City as a primary source of agricultural produce, particularly vegetables like cabbage, onion, lettuce, cauliflower, broccoli, and beans, which he noted should be reestablished through sound management of the city’s natural resources.
“We should focus on helping the agricultural sector to produce enough food for all your countrymen so that the food security we all seriously want to achieve could be attained and the Philippines will become self-sufficient and would no longer need to import basic agricultural and marine products from other countries,” he pointed out.
He added that in achieving food security where every Filipino household has enough sustenance for each family, programs for sustainable development would become easier to attain with people empowerment and equitable governance.
“It is the advocacy of our President to establish a strong nation that is self-reliant and resilient to the adverse impacts of climate change, so it is imperative for the Climate Change Commission (CCC) to help LGUs like Baguio City achieve success through farm inputs and modern technology,” Dela Cruz concluded. (ai/mtvn)
