MANILA, Feb. 3 – The recognition of the Puerto Princesa Underground River (PPUR) as one of world’s Seven Wonders of Nature and the adoption of the Manila Declaration on furthering the implementation of the Global Programme of Action (GPA) for the Protection of the Marine Environment marked the celebration of World Wetlands Day in the country, stressed Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Ramon J. P. Paje on Friday.

“This is definitely a ‘double success of sort’ for our wetland areas in particular, and the marine environment in general. In both events, Filipinos should take pride for taking the lead in the global effort to protect wetland areas not only for the economic benefits they provide but also the ecological services that we are now enjoying, and which we want the next generations to also enjoy,” Paje said.

February 2 of every year is designated as World Wetlands Day (WWD) by the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, also known as the Ramsar Convention. It is also declared the National Wetlands Day by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 74, series of 1999. This year’s theme is “Wetlands and Tourism”.

Wetlands are lands that may be permanently or seasonally inundated. These include lakes and rivers, swamps and marshes, peatlands, estuaries, tidal flats, mangroves and coral reefs, and even man-made sites such as fish ponds, rice paddies and reservoirs.

Paje said that the newly-declared wonder of nature best exemplifies this year’s WWD theme. “PPUR is a wetland, and has long been considered a prime natural jewel for our local tourism, drawing both foreign and local tourists,” he said.

According to him, the underground river is part of a national park that encompasses various interconnecting ecosystems from the mountain to the sea, including forests, inland wetlands like rivers and swamps, and coastal wetlands such as tidal flats and seagrass beds.

Earlier, Paje announced the move of the DENR, through its Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB), to officially nominate PPUR to the Ramsar Convention as a “wetland of international importance.”

Paje also said that the adoption of the Manila Declaration by representatives of 65 countries that participated in the recently concluded Global Conference on Land-Ocean Connections and the Intergovernmental Review Meeting on the Implementation of the GPA for the Protection of Marine Environment was equally an important tool in support of this year’s WWD’s international theme.

“Tourism has been identified in the global meeting as a key sector whose impacts and opportunities are closely interlinked with coastal areas and other wetland areas, as well as the marine environment,” he said.

Containing 16 provisions focusing on programs and activities that need to be undertaken starting this year up to 2016, the Manila Declaration calls on member countries to step up their efforts to protect the ‘blue world’ from pollutive land-based activities, particularly on priority areas such as marine litter, wastewater, fertilizer-induced pollution and biodiversity loss. (PNA) DCT/PR/utb

UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 4 — Johnson Toribiong, president of Palau, said here on Friday that he will bring the issue of climate change to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Toribiong explained his initiative as he addressed journalists at a press conference held at the UN headquarters in New York. The president was joined by Stuart Beck, permanent representative of Palau to the UN.

"Climate change is the greatest challenge facing our planet today," said Toribiong. "Within a generation, rising seas threaten to swallow entire countries, along with their unique histories, languages and cultures. It has impacted our lives daily in Palau and it weighs heavily on our hearts."

He said that for Pacific Island nations, the climate change debate is not a matter of mere economics or geopolitics but a matter of survival. Waters around the islands, he noted, are rising two or three times faster than in any other region of the world.

"That differential might help explain why we speak about climate change so urgently and why we look to everyone in every corner of the United Nations to find a solution," he said.

According to Toribiong, international law could be a great help in collaborating on a shared solution to the issue of climate change, as years of negotiation on the issue have failed to produce a binding agreement thus far.

"It's a fundamental precept that international law compels states to ensure that their territories are not used to violate the rights of other states," he said. "This basic obligation is confirmed by the ICJ draft articles of the International Law Commission, international political conventions and declarations and treaties. It has been tried and tested ,and derives its force from the basic notion of equality between all states that is itself enshrined under article 2 of the United Nations charter."

The ICJ, based in The Hague, is a 15-member judicial body that delivers legal opinions to member states and UN organs. The UN Security Council and UN General Assembly can vote to ask for advisory opinions from the court on relevant questions.

Toribiong said there is a need for a shared solution to climate change because the efforts made by Pacific islands to prevent the problem and mitigate its effects are insufficient on their own.

"We need everyone to buy in or it won't work," he explained. " An ICJ advisory opinion would give us the guidance we need on what all states must do." (PNA/Xinhua)

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WELLINGTON, Feb. 4 — A magnitude 5 earthquake shook New Zealand's upper South Island on Saturday morning, causing no injures or damages.

The quake stuck 70 kms northeast of Collingwood, Golden Bay at 5. 16 a.m. (1616 GMT Friday), and was 190 kms deep, New Zealand government geological agency GNS Science said.

It was largely felt in Wellington, Lower Hutt and the Kapiti Coast. (PNA/Xinhua)

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BELGRADE, Feb. 4 — A state of emergency was declared in 26 municipalities in Serbia on Friday as relentless snowfall that blanketed much of the Western Balkans continue.

Schools were closed and thousands of households in mountainous areas remained inaccessible due to continuous snow and icy conditions.

The Serbian government on Friday approved financial assistance and fuel supplies for up to 31 vulnerable municipalities, struggling with the frigid conditions that have taken six lives to date.

Minister of Education and Science Zarko Obradovic recommended that all elementary and secondary schools in Serbia remain closed during the upcoming week. Almost 17,000 pupils in primary and secondary schools reportedly did not attend classes on Friday because of the snow storm.

Although the entire country has been hit by snow and freezing temperatures, the most difficult situation remained in the swath of territory that extends from the Montenegrin border through to Bulgaria — Sjenica, Ivanjica, Prijepolje, Crna Trava and Surdulica.

In neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH),which are facing the same winter storm conditions, schools will be closed next week in the Serb entity and in the Sarajevo Canton.

An avalanche on a regional road east of Sarajevo buried a car and part of a bus, with 20 passengers on board. The driver of the vehicle managed to escape and no one was injured.

Nonetheless, a number of roads at high elevation remained impassable and electricity supply to numerous snow-bound villages were interrupted. In Han Pijeska, in the east of BiH, over 90 cms of snow has been recorded thus far, with temperatures expected to drop to as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius.

The international airport in Podgorica, the Montenegrin capital, was closed for the second time in two days due to snowfall. Trucks with trailers have been kept off many roads in the mountainous interior due to slippery road surfaces and reduced visibility. (PNA/Xinhua)

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THE HAGUE, Feb. 4 — Heavy snowfall disrupted traffic on roads and railways in the Netherlands on Friday.

In late afternoon, no trains were running around Amsterdam and Utrecht, two of the biggest train stations in the country, due to heavy snowfall of up to 14 cms. Only a few trains were running around the cities of The Hague, Amersfoort, Rotterdam and Alkmaar. By early evening, train traffic had been slowly recovering.

The snowfall also caused chaos on the roads, with a peak of 831 kms traffic jams. Friday saw the fourth traffic jam ever in the country, still behind the record of 975 kms on Feb. 8, 1999. Around 1,000 accidents were reported, twice as much as on a normal Friday.

Public transport was also affected, including air traffic. At Schiphol Airport, dozens of arriving and departing flights were delayed and a number of flights were canceled. (PNA/Xinhua)

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ROME, Feb. 4 — Record low Siberian temperatures placed Italy on alert on Friday as a rare snowfall disrupted transport and services throughout the country.

Cars in Rome unprovided with snow chains or snow tyres were banned from the roads covered by feet of snow, while schools and public offices were closed in the capital and other cities to prevent casualties and allow teams of snowplows to clean roads.

"The situation inside Rome is under control, but the real problem is the capital being isolated from the outside as highways are blocked," Mayor Gianni Alemanno told Rai state television.

He said such an extraordinary snowfall had not occurred since 1985.

The Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill remained closed to prevent accidents, Director of the Colosseum Rossella Rea was quoted as saying by the ANSA news agency.

A number of trains were canceled or delayed, stranding thousands of passengers at stations for hours. In northern Milan, the railway station was temporarily left open in the night to protect tens of clochards from below-zero temperatures, after one of them was found frozen to death.

Bologna and Ancona international airports were temporarily closed, while many flights were grounded or delayed throughout the country.

According to local media reports, many places in the northern hinterland of Rome remained completely isolated and were left without electricity as power lines were cut.

"We are in absolute emergency, with some districts of our town totally submerged by meters of snow," Mayor of the town of Meldola in Emilia Romagna Gian Luca Zattini told Rai.

"Some nearby places remained completely isolated and without electric current so that emergency teams had to bring medicines to elderly and ill people blocked for hours at their homes," he said.

Temperatures were around 10 degrees below zero in many cities, reaching 30 degrees below zero on Mount Rosa.

In the worst hit regions, such as central Emilia Romagna and Marche, local authorities were running short of salt used to melt the ice and snow.

According to local media, five people were killed in Italy following the wave of bad weather, including a man who was found dead in his car covered in snow in southern Isernia, and an elderly woman who froze to death at night in northern Savona.

According to forecasts, snowfalls will affect the capital also on Saturday.

Because of the bad weather, a number of Italian Serie A and B soccer matches were also canceled or postponed to later this month. (PNA/Xinhua)

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TOKYO, Feb. 3 — Snow is expected to continue falling on the coastal prefectures alongside the Sea of Japan in the country on Friday after it peaked on Thursday, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA).

The agency said the winter pressure pattern had abated, ending weeks of heavy snowfall that led to more than 56 deaths across the country as of Thursday.

At 11 a.m., up to 3.51 meters of snow had accumulated at Okura Village in northern Yamagata Prefecture. At Tsunan Town in Niigata Prefecture, 3.48 meters of snow was on the ground, according to the public broadcaster NHK.

The JMA forecast that snow will fall in mountainous areas of central and northern Japan through Saturday.

Heavy snowfalls covered a wide swathe of region including the northern prefectures like Niigata, the northernmost island of Hokkaido and the western part.

A latest snow slide at a popular mountain hot-spring resort in northern Akita prefecture killed three people Wednesday evening.

The heavy snowfall have caused disruptions in train services and cancellation of flights in the country.

On Thursday, several main motorways connecting major cities in western Japan were partly closed and domestic operation of the air traffic over the affected areas was suspended due to the severe weather condition. (PNA/Xinhua) scs/utb

CAMP PANACAN, Davao City, Feb. 3 – Members of the 28th Infantry Battalion and employees of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Lupon, Davao Oriental spearheaded the coastal clean-up drive Thursday in connection with the 2012 World and National Wetland Day with the theme: “Wetland and Tourism”.

A report reaching the 10th Civil-Military Operations Battalion said a total of 200 students from the Lupon Comprehensive National High School participated in the activity which was highlighted by planting mangroves and budded trees.

Lt. Col. Leopoldo A. Imbang Jr., commanding officer of the 28th Infantry Battalion assured that environmental protection and preservation will be integrated in the activities of his soldiers.

He recalled that it had been the second occasion when soldiers engaged in coastal clean-up drive in the shorelines of Lupon while conducting Peace and Development Outreach program (PDOP) in the area.

“Environmental protection is everybody’s concern, and our untiring participation in these activities is to stress the role of AFP as environmental protectors,” Imbang said. (PNA) LAP/Joey Sem G. Dalumpines/ldp

MANILA, Feb. 3 – Senator Loren Legarda emphasized on Friday that the "lack of environmental protection programs in the country has posed threats on our very own survival, leaving many Filipinos hungry despite the abundance of natural resources."

Legarda, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, said that the recent committee hearing on the agreement to establish the Office of the Worldfish Center in the Philippines revealed that environmental degradation has taken its toll on the country’s food stability, noting recent reports that the Philippines now imports "galunggong."

“Recently, the SWS released its survey results showing an increase in hunger incidence in the country, and now there are reports that we are already importing galunggong. But 71 percent of the fish species in the world are found in the Coral Triangle and the Philippines is one of the six countries that forms part of the area. We are so rich, but why are we hungry?” the senator stated.

The National Fisheries Research and Development Institute (NFRDI) said that galunggong is one of the three major pelagic species captured in the Philippine seas, but due to overfishing and illegal practices such as blast fishing, the supply of galunggong gradually decreased, forcing the government to prohibit fishing activities in the Zamboanga Peninsula effective December last year.

“We are blessed with rich and diverse coastal and marine resources such as coral reefs, mangroves, fisheries and many others. However, continued marine degradation and weak enforcement of our fisheries law will continue to deprive our citizens of their basic needs,” Legarda stressed.

“Clearly, environmental protection is not an esoteric concept, it is about food and livelihood. We are now seeing the direct impact of environment degradation and abuse of natural resources to the hunger that many of our citizens have been experiencing for so long. It is immensely disturbing that we have allowed the depletion of our valuable resources at the risk of leaving nothing for the future generations of Filipinos,” the senator concluded. (PNA) scs/PR/utb

SEOUL, Feb. 3 — The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Friday it will attach an anti-pollution device to all city buses as part of efforts to cut emissions and fuel costs.

The device is designed to beep when drivers make a quick start or slam on the brakes, while automatically cutting off the engine of idling vehicles, according to the city.

A total of Seoul's 8,900 buses, including town shuttle buses, will be equipped with the device by 2014, the city government said. So far, around 30 percent of buses, or 2,708, have the gadget under the government's pilot project launched in 2009.

About 26 billion won (US$ 23.2 million) is expected to be saved per year if each bus reduces its current costs of fuel by 10 percent, the city said.

"Our pilot project showed that an average of 13 percent of fuel costs per vehicle was saved thanks to the gadget," said Jeong Heung-soon, the director of the city's eco-friendly transportation department.

Education programs about environmentally-friendly ways of driving have also been offered to bus drivers, the city government said, adding it will give incentives to the drivers and their companies if they achieve a certain level of energy costs reduction.

"Attaching the gadget to buses aims to save energy and reduce green house gases, which will ultimately boost public safety," Jeong added. (PNA/Xinhua)

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