Skip to content

Philippines Today

home of the Global Filipino

Menu
  • News Stories
  • Regional News
  • Business & Economy
  • Science & Technology
  • International
Menu

Lawmakers urged to prioritize, strengthen RE Bill

Posted on November 15, 2006

Manila, 15 November 2006—Christmas will be brighter with the prioritization of the Renewable Energy (RE) Bill, Greenpeace said today at the lighting of the first-ever solar-powered Christmas tree in the House of Representatives. The tree, which runs on clean, renewable energy from the sun, was lit by Congressmen Lorenzo Tañada III (4th District, Quezon) and Nerius Acosta, Jr (1st District, Bukidnon) who joined Greenpeace in urging the Senate to prioritize the passage of the Renewable Energy (RE) Bill as a measure to ensure the country’s energy security and to combat the grave impacts of climate change certain to create serious repercussions on the country’s ailing economy.

Greenpeace was in the House of Representatives to engage lawmakers in their ‘Pilipinas, Go Renewable’ campaign which calls for a massive uptake of renewable energy to combat climate change. Last week, the environmental group was at the Philippine Senate to call for support for a stronger renewable energy bill from senators. The RE Bill was passed by Congress last September but it has yet to move in the Senate where it is currently in the Committee on Energy. Unfortunately, the bill was removed from the list of priority legislations for 2006 during the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) meeting despite the support of several senators, including Senate President Manny Villar.

“Climate change has been acknowledged by experts as the greatest threat that our world faces today. It poses an even greater threat to developing countries like ours. Renewable energy solutions are in our reach but for these to work we need to act immediately. Prioritizing the RE Bill is the first crucial step,” said Rep. Tañada, who, with Rep. Acosta, is one of the bill’s authors.

The Christmas tree lighting was one of the highlights of Greenpeace’s activities in the Congress which included an exhibit of climate change impacts and solutions, and featured a solar-powered café where one of Time Magazine’s Asian Heroes for 2003, celebrity Chin Chin Gutierrez, served coffee to members of the Lower House. During today’s activity, congress representatives also symbolized their support for renewable energy by hanging decorations symbolizing wind and solar power on the 12-foot Christmas Tree at the session hall lobby. The event was accompanied by carols from a choir and included the participation of grade six pupils from Multiple Intelligence School in Quezon City.

The young students called on lawmakers to make a difference by prioritizing the RE Bill. “I am only 12 years old, but already I have witnessed major disasters due to climate change,” said Lorenzo Armovit.

Along with their call to fast-track the passage of the RE Bill, Greenpeace is pushing for the inclusion of important time bound targets for the bill to be most effective in its objective to fight climate change and ensure the country’s energy security. In order for RE technologies to gain a foothold in the Philippine power sector, Greenpeace says it is both necessary and urgent that the country adopts a renewable energy policy that has ambitious and time bound targets as well as a proven mechanism that genuinely promotes the massive utilization of clean energy. Greenpeace is calling on the Philippine government to source at least 10% of the country’s energy needs from renewable sources such as wind, solar, and modern biomass by the year 2010.

“The moral obligation—and economic imperative—for our government to stop climate change has never been more clear,” said Greenpeace Southeast Asia Campaigns Director Von Hernandez. “The question now isn’t whether climate change should be among the country’s urgent concerns, but how soon we can embrace immediate and concrete measures to stop this impending catastrophe and secure a safe future for our children.”

Greenpeace is an independent, campaigning organization which uses non-violent, creative confrontation to expose global environment problems, and to force the solutions which are essential to a green and peaceful future.

For more information:
Von Hernandez, Campaigns Director, +63 917 526 3050
Jasper Inventor, Climate and Energy Campaigner, +63 917 300 9567
Lea Guerrero, Media Campaigner, +63 916 374 4969, +63 2 434 7034 loc 104

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • More
  • Tumblr
  • Reddit

Related

News Categories

  • Announcement (34)
  • Business & Economy (1,567)
  • Comment and Opinion (74)
    • Random Thoughts (18)
  • Current Issues (425)
    • Charter Change (1)
    • Election (228)
    • Population (6)
  • International (389)
  • Life In Japan (66)
    • Everything Japan (41)
  • Literary (34)
  • Miscellaneous (610)
  • News Stories (5,312)
  • OFW Corner (297)
  • Others (75)
  • People (408)
  • Press Releases (163)
  • Regional News (3,362)
  • Science and Technology (502)
  • Sports & Entertainment (287)

Latest News

  • BSP keeps policy rates anew December 17, 2015
  • NEDA cuts PHL additional rice import for 2016 by 25% December 17, 2015
  • DA cites serious implications of banning genetically modified products December 17, 2015
  • BBL is not yet dead – Drilon December 17, 2015
  • Comelec recognizes Duterte’s CoC for president December 17, 2015
  • NEDA chief sees 2015 growth at 6% despite typhoons December 17, 2015
  • House of Representatives ratifies bicam report on P3.002-T national budget for 2016 December 17, 2015
  • Cebu-based developer invests PHP430M to build 709 townhouse units in north Cebu town December 17, 2015
  • City gov’t eyes P75-M income from economic enterprise December 17, 2015
  • Baguio City LGU presents traffic plan for holiday season December 17, 2015

Archives

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Science and Technology

  • DOST-ICTO targets 500,000 web-based workers from countryside by 2016
  • (Feature) STARBOOKS: A ‘makeover’ for librarians
  • Science, research reduce ‘cocolisap’ hotspot areas in PHL
  • Montejo to further improve PAGASA and empower scientists
  • 1st PPP in biomedical research produces knee replacement system fit for Asians

Press Releases

  • Microsoft to buy Nokia’s mobile devices business for 5.44-B euros
  • New World Bank climate change report should spur SEA and world leaders into action: Greenpeace
  • Save the Philippine Seas before it’s too late — Greenpeace
  • Palanca Awards’ last call for entries
  • Philippines joins the global call for Arctic protection

Comment and Opinion

  • Remembering the dead is a celebration of life
  • Killer earthquake unlikely to hit Panay Island in near future – analyst
  • It’s not just more fun to invest in the Philippines, it is also profitable, says President Aquino
  • How does one differentiate a tamaraw from a carabao?
  • Fun is not just about the place, it is also about the people, says DOT chief

OFW Corner

  • Ebola infection risk low in Croatia
  • Death toll rises to 41, over 100 still missing in landslide in India
  • Asbestos use in construction a labor hazard
  • 500,000 OFWs to benefit POEA on-line transactions — Baldoz
  • 25 distressed OFWs return home from Riyadh
©2025 Philippines Today | Design: Newspaperly WordPress Theme