TEN MILLION signatures might just be what it takes to finally stop mining in Palawan. That is, if ABS-CBN Foundation, Inc. Managing Director Gina Lopez is to have her way.

The signature campaign was one of the many things that was discussed during the Ateneo National Environmental Conference (ANECON) 2011.

Involvement

Beyond encouraging participation in environment campaigns, the conference introduced other ways which students could pursue to be more involved in the country’s pursuit toward a more environment-friendly mode of living. ANECON was held from January 29 to 31 at the Ateneo de Manila University.

Themed “Building a League of Environmental Youth Leaders, Engaging Upon the Threats of Climate Change,” the conference featured talks, workshops, and even resolution building sessions which are aimed to train student leaders from all over the Philippines to be involved in environmental initiatives.

The ‘No to Mining in Palawan’ is spearheaded by the ABS-CBN Foundation, Inc. It is inspired by Dr. Gerry Ortega, a radio broadcaster in ABS-CBN who was shot on January 24 for his anti-mining stand.

Save the last frontier

In her presentation “Why Palawan Must be a NO-GO Zone for Mining,” Lopez stressed the importance of Palawan’s biodiversity and how mining has destroyed the place.

According to her, Palawan has 17 of the 51 key biodiversity areas in the Philippines. In addition, it has 40% of the country’s mangrove areas, 30% of the remaining coral reefs, two United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization World Heritage Sites, and eight protected areas.  ”That’s why if you talk about Palawan, you call it the ‘Last Frontier,’” she said.

However, Palawan’s rich environment has been compromised in order to accommodate mining activities. From having 2,400 hectares of primary forests, only 287 hectares is left in Brooke’s Point. In the same place, core zone areas have dropped from 1,410 hectares to 510 hectares in 2006.  Core zones are areas essential to the ecosystem because trees grow there naturally.

Lopez also stated the other ill effects of mining in Palawan, such as the destruction of wildlife, water pollution, non-rehabilitation and pollution of mined out areas, and erosion of the topsoil. At present, there are 384 mining claims and 11 abandoned mine sites in Palawan.

Lopez urged the ANECON participants to help stop mining in Palawan. She said, “Are we going to allow the government…[or whichever] authority [to] rule the country this way?”

Empowerment and more

Lorenzo Quintos, founder of the environmental organization UP One Earth, also talked about how the conference’s participants can still promote environmental causes regardless of their college courses.

Aside from the talks, ANECON also provided the participants with workshops. Delegates were asked to draft resolutions for environmental projects that could potentially be implemented in their respective regions.

Sophomore Alexandra Beatrice Cancio, who was thrilled about the workshops, described her ANECON experience as “enriching.” She said, “The best parts [of ANECON] were interacting with the delegates and [participating in] the workshops because when you [get to] share ideas and you can develop them more.”

Meanwhile, senior Maria Catherine Bernadette Roxas said that she realized the importance of climate change awareness. “We are not very critical about these things. The effect of climate change is very subtle in a way that you don’t realize it. [But] it’s affecting you already,” she said.

Global, local scale

Other talks given throughout the three-day conference addressed global environmental issues.

Gemma Narisma, PhD of the Manila Observatory, Blas Tabaranza Jr. of the Haribon Foundation and Donna Paz Reyes, PhD of Miriam College Environmental Studies Institute gave a talk on the basics of climate change.

Meanwhile, Ateneo School of Government Dean Antonio La Viña PhD, Esperanza Garcia of International Youth Council and Titus Tan of Sanlakas Youth talked about climate justice. They expounded on the parties affected by climate change and the parties which should be held accountable for these changes.

Local environmental issues were also discussed in other talks including the discussion of the country’s environmental laws and their implementation.