MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources threw its support behind a bill aiming to develop an ecosystem and natural capital accounting system in the country, saying this will provide a “snapshot of the environment and its contribution to the economy.”
DENR Secretary Antonia Loyzaga said the proposed Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System (PENCAS) will not only determine the contributions of various ecosystems to economic development, but will also result in better management of natural resources and improved climate and disaster resilience.
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“PENCAS [will] help map possible directions in the development of the nation beyond traditional indicators and allow us to explore multiple trajectories for social, economic, and [environmental] development from the valuation of our natural resources,” Loyzaga said during a Senate hearing on the proposed measure.
According to Loyzaga, the accounting system may also serve as a “core means” of achieving agendas on biodiversity, climate, Sustainable Development Goals and green recovery.
She added that PENCAS will help equip the agency’s Water Resources Management Office, which was recently created by President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., by providing information on the physical flows of water, stocks of water assets and changes to these, and transactions related to water resources.
The environment department earlier established a national environment and natural resources geospatial database that will aid the agency in the implementation of government and in the valuation of natural resources.
Sens. Loren Legarda, Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr. and Joel Villanueva filed bills seeking to institutionalize PENCAS. Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez (Negros Occidental) filed a counterpart measure in the lower chamber.
“As we face an age of changing climate and unprecedented biodiversity loss, the challenge is how we can use our vulnerability as an opportunity to examine the role and impact of natural resources on the economic growth of a developing nation such as our country," Legarda said in her opening statement.
Under Legarda's bill, PENCAS will ensure that ecosystems and habitats, especially those in critical danger of irreparable damage, are conserved and restored.
The Philippines is one of the countries most at risk from the impacts of climate change such as strong cyclones and droughts, with poor and rural communities bearing the brunt of the disasters.
The Philippines is also one of the mega-biodiverse countries in the world, but it is tagged as a biodiversity hotspot with at least 700 threatened species.