(philstar.com) Updated August 13, 2010 11:34 PM Comments (0)  |
LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines (Xinhua) - In the province of Albay, the local government's plan to put up an international airport is in line with its vision of a " climate proof" and "disaster proof" economic development.
The Daraga International Airport, which will rise from what was once a 150 hectares of rice fields, is expected to spur more local and foreign travelers to visit not only Albay - renown for being home of the beautiful Mayon Volcano - but the nearby provinces of Sorsogon and Camarines Sur as well.
A more vibrant tourism industry will then provide livelihood to residents of resettlement areas surrounding the airport, helping them to recover from the natural hazards that ruined their farms and houses.
The airport - and the many benefits it entails - also reaffirms Albay's status as a global model for climate change adaptation.
"This is a geo-strategic intervention," Albay Governor Joey Salceda said in a meeting with members of the Philippine Network of Environmental Journalists (PNEJ).
Salceda estimated that the tourism industry will provide livelihood for the roughly 10,000 "high risk" families who need to be relocated in permanent resettlement sites, mostly in Daraga. These families are now residing around Mayon Volcano - an active volcano that erupted 49 times in the last four centuries.
For Salceda, who was named "senior champion" of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction by the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN-ISDR), boosting Albay's tourism industry is less about raising revenues and more of defending the Albayenos from numerous natural disasters.
"Albay is no longer about GDP blah blah blah. It is more about social desirability," he said.
Located about 500 kilometers south of the country's capital, Albay is one of the most calamity-prone provinces by virtue of its geography. It sits right smack at the typhoon belt and the Pacific ring of fire, and for the last few years thousands of its residents have been displaced by either typhoons, flooding and volcanic eruptions.
Previous local officials tried to lessen the damages wrought by these hazards by setting up a calamity fund and putting up the Albay Public Safety and Emergency Management Office (APSEMO) in 1995.
The well-organized and adequately funded APSEMO serves as the nerve center for the province's disaster preparedness, response and recovery programs. All these were done in collaboration with local communities, private companies, local police and military and other concerned government agencies.
When Salceda was first elected as governor in 2007, he didn't only support APSEMO but made disaster risk reduction (DRR) a key economic policy. He also recognized that it's not enough to focus on DRR, but also to put climate change adaptation and mitigation part of the economic agenda.
As sea temperatures rise and carbon emissions continue to increase, vulnerable areas like Albay are expected to suffer more from stronger typhoons, flooding, tsunami and intense drought. The nearly 40 percent poverty incidence in the province is aggravating matters as those who have no resources are the ones who suffer most from any tragedy.
The case of annexation of Daraga to Legazpi City (Bicol studies series)
Unless countries all over the world change their habits and lead a low-carbon lifestyle, the over 1 million Albayanons will just have to cope with the harsh impact of a warmer planet.
This is where the government needs to step in as it is the only entity that have the resources to respond to a large scale problem. As Salceda noted, it is the right of these Albayenons to be protected from the disaster and it his job as a province's chief executive to respond to that.
"Albay is vulnerable to disasters but we (the local government and the community) can do something about it," he said.
The construction of the Daraga airport is part of the Guinobatan-Camalig-Daraga-Legazpi (Guicadale) Business Platform - the local government's flagship economic program and main disaster risk reduction strategy.
Through Guicadale, the local government will develop the three towns (Guinobatan, Camalig and Daraga) and the provincial capitol of Legazpi to spur economic activities safe not only from the volcano's mudflows but also from tsunami as several resettlement sites will be put in these areas.
Aside from the airport and resettlement sites, Salceda said that roads will be built to connect these areas, thus reducing transport costs and ease up trade and access to public hospitals and schools that are based in Legazpi city.
The airport alone will cost P3.4 billion ($74.9 million) and will be financed by the national government. The airport is seen to be operational by 2012. Foreign grants and allocation from the national government finance the construction of eight new resettlement sites and the road networks.
The airport is also part of Salceda's ambitious plan to develop Albay's tourism potential while at the same time pursue social development.
The Daraga International Airport, which will rise from what was once a 150 hectares of rice fields, is expected to spur more local and foreign travelers to visit not only Albay - renown for being home of the beautiful Mayon Volcano - but the nearby provinces of Sorsogon and Camarines Sur as well.
A more vibrant tourism industry will then provide livelihood to residents of resettlement areas surrounding the airport, helping them to recover from the natural hazards that ruined their farms and houses.
The airport - and the many benefits it entails - also reaffirms Albay's status as a global model for climate change adaptation.
"This is a geo-strategic intervention," Albay Governor Joey Salceda said in a meeting with members of the Philippine Network of Environmental Journalists (PNEJ).
Salceda estimated that the tourism industry will provide livelihood for the roughly 10,000 "high risk" families who need to be relocated in permanent resettlement sites, mostly in Daraga. These families are now residing around Mayon Volcano - an active volcano that erupted 49 times in the last four centuries.
For Salceda, who was named "senior champion" of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction by the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN-ISDR), boosting Albay's tourism industry is less about raising revenues and more of defending the Albayenos from numerous natural disasters.
"Albay is no longer about GDP blah blah blah. It is more about social desirability," he said.
Previous local officials tried to lessen the damages wrought by these hazards by setting up a calamity fund and putting up the Albay Public Safety and Emergency Management Office (APSEMO) in 1995.
The well-organized and adequately funded APSEMO serves as the nerve center for the province's disaster preparedness, response and recovery programs. All these were done in collaboration with local communities, private companies, local police and military and other concerned government agencies.
When Salceda was first elected as governor in 2007, he didn't only support APSEMO but made disaster risk reduction (DRR) a key economic policy. He also recognized that it's not enough to focus on DRR, but also to put climate change adaptation and mitigation part of the economic agenda.
As sea temperatures rise and carbon emissions continue to increase, vulnerable areas like Albay are expected to suffer more from stronger typhoons, flooding, tsunami and intense drought. The nearly 40 percent poverty incidence in the province is aggravating matters as those who have no resources are the ones who suffer most from any tragedy.
The case of annexation of Daraga to Legazpi City (Bicol studies series)
Unless countries all over the world change their habits and lead a low-carbon lifestyle, the over 1 million Albayanons will just have to cope with the harsh impact of a warmer planet.
This is where the government needs to step in as it is the only entity that have the resources to respond to a large scale problem. As Salceda noted, it is the right of these Albayenons to be protected from the disaster and it his job as a province's chief executive to respond to that.
"Albay is vulnerable to disasters but we (the local government and the community) can do something about it," he said.
The construction of the Daraga airport is part of the Guinobatan-Camalig-Daraga-Legazpi (Guicadale) Business Platform - the local government's flagship economic program and main disaster risk reduction strategy.
Through Guicadale, the local government will develop the three towns (Guinobatan, Camalig and Daraga) and the provincial capitol of Legazpi to spur economic activities safe not only from the volcano's mudflows but also from tsunami as several resettlement sites will be put in these areas.
Aside from the airport and resettlement sites, Salceda said that roads will be built to connect these areas, thus reducing transport costs and ease up trade and access to public hospitals and schools that are based in Legazpi city.
The airport alone will cost P3.4 billion ($74.9 million) and will be financed by the national government. The airport is seen to be operational by 2012. Foreign grants and allocation from the national government finance the construction of eight new resettlement sites and the road networks.
The airport is also part of Salceda's ambitious plan to develop Albay's tourism potential while at the same time pursue social development.
Published in Philippine Star August 15, 2010.
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