DENR chief cites mandate ‘failure’
CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY: Environment Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga on Thursday said the country’s wildlife species are threatened as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) failed to set targets to remove them from their endangered status.
“How many and how much of our wildlife is threatened and endangered and we have failed to set targets to remove these species from their endangered status, so we will begin to set those very concrete targets with your help, knowledge and expertise, hopefully in the very near future,” Yulo-Loyzaga said in her speech during a two-day forum among stakeholders in the province here.
She added that the diversity in the Mindanao region requires a localized and contextualized approach and that the DENR under the Marcos administration is committed to ensure extensive consultation.
“The department stands by the principle of common but differentiated responsibility in terms of environmental degradation and we acknowledge that some bear more responsibility than others in our pursuit of development. We are, however, hopeful, and this is where our close collaboration and partnership can yield the most significant results. This synergy will generate new capacity for everyone to protect, restore and enhance our rich but threatened ecosystems,” according to the DENR chief.
She said Mindanao is faced with many challenges but it is also rife with opportunities.
“If we all work together, the government, the private sector, civil society, the academe, development partners and the media, Mindanao’s potential today can be unlocked. The next couple of days provide an opportunity to develop initial strategies, which must be followed through with a very extensive consultation process, on how to accelerate development in the region,” the secretary added.
According to her, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.’s agenda, particularly on the creation of green jobs by pursuing a blue economy and establishing livable and sustainable communities, has guided the DENR in fulfilling its mandate.
“There is no question that the preservation of the environment is the preservation of life. If we cannot mitigate climate change, all our plans for the economy, all our plans for the future will be for naught,” she said.
The DENR chief also said included in the priorities of the Marcos administration is to manage risk and build resilience using a ridge-to-reef and ecosystems-based approach.
“We at the DENR firmly believe that addressing issues pertaining to the environment and our country’s natural resources needs a comprehensive approach and multistakeholder partnerships for evidence-informed, inclusive and adaptive leadership. We need continued dialogues to bolster cooperation and understanding so that we can overcome the challenges of coherence and implementation,” she added.