Albay province hosts pioneering climate change study

By Johnny C. Nunez

LEGAZPI CITY, Dec. 20 -– Albay province hosts starting this month a critical and pioneering study by the Asia Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN), an international research group, on the impact of, and mitigating measures against global warming and climate change.

The ongoing eruption of Mayon Volcano highlights once again the lead role Albay province is destined to play in disaster mitigation and survival given the fact the Bicol province is a favorite focus of natural calamities.

Under Gov. Joey Salceda, Albay adopted the preemptive evacuation policy in times of extreme weather disturbances attributed to global warming, that has already spared countless lives from needless death and which other local government units have adopted as their own.

APN has chosen Albay province to pioneer the climate change simulation research and study, which it will conduct jointly with the College of Forestry and Natural Resources of the University of the Philippines in Los Baños.

Prof. Juan Pulhin of the Department of Social Forestry and Forest Governance of the UP College of Forestry and Natural Resources, a Nobel Peace Prize awardee in the field of climate change, said the study, titled "Capacity Development on Integration of Science and Local Knowledge for Climate Change Impacts and Vulnerability Assessments," starts this month.

Pulhin said the study, the project agreement for which was earlier signed by APN and the UPLB Foundation, will last for a year. It will be undertaken in partnership with Professor Richard Warrick of the University of the Sunshine Coast of Australia – another Nobel Peace Prize awardee – who designed the climate simulation model or “SimCLIM.”

Pulhin said “SimCLIM” has been customized for Albay where it will be used in impact and vulnerability assessments and in adaptation planning. “We are happy for this partnership since it is the first time we will have the opportunity to use SimCLIM systems in the Philippines to determine future climate changes,” he added.

Gov. Salceda, who also serves as Presidential Economic Adviser, started his climate change adaptation drive when he hosted the 1st National Conference on Climate Change Adaptation in 2008 in Legazpi City.

The Legazpi event was followed recently by the 2nd National Conference on Climate Change Adaptation or NCCCA+2 held at the Diamond Hotel in Manila only last October.

Salceda’s initiatives placed Albay in the forefront of the campaign to teach people how to effectively adapt to the effects of sudden changes in climate as manifested by the increasing frequency and strength in weather disturbances that visit the country.

The initiatives have earned Salceda and his province numerous citations, awards and recognitions. He is now frequently invited either as resource speaker or participant in various local and international gatherings.

He was one of the speakers in the recently concluded 14th National Press Congress organized by the Publishers Association of the Philippines, Inc. (PAPI) at the SBMA International convention Center, immediately after which he flew to Cambodia for a similar engagement. (PNA)

DCT/JCN/rsm

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