EDITORIAL - Accession to the climate deal

After repeatedly lambasting the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, President Duterte approved the deal last Tuesday. Support for the climate treaty by most of his Cabinet members probably contributed to the President’s change of heart.

This brings the nation just one step short of acceding to the binding global deal approved in 2015 to cut greenhouse gas emissions and keep increases in global temperature to “well below” 2 degrees Celsius. Under the deal, Manila is committing to reduce its carbon emissions by 70 percent by 2030. The final step is Senate concurrence, but this is expected to be easier after the climate deal received the President’s official imprimatur.

A 70 percent cut is an ambitious goal for a developing country with limited resources for going green, and which can’t even effectively implement a law passed way back in 1999 to deal with air pollution. To fulfill commitments to the climate deal, the President is banking on the country’s access to a global fund to be set up by wealthy countries by 2020 amounting to about $100 billion a year.

The nation, however, cannot wait until 2020 to begin abiding by its international commitments to confront climate change. International climate experts have warned that the Philippines is among the most vulnerable to the adverse impact of global warming. Even without access to the Green Climate Fund, the country must do what it can to reduce its carbon footprint.

The President is correct in stressing that abiding by the climate deal must not significantly curtail industrialization efforts by developing states like the Philippines. He also understands that millions of impoverished Filipinos depend on economic activities that contribute to the degradation of the environment. But the nation can aim to strike a balance in the debates on climate change.

With the nation now committed to the climate deal, more effort can be undertaken and investments made in climate resilience. People can understand what’s at stake in making development sustainable. The President’s approval of the deal is a welcome step. The hard part is complying with the nation’s international commitments.