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New Year revelry also fatally injures Mother Earth |
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 Sec. Heherson Alvarez
"An average Filipino has a carbon footprint of 1.5 tons every year, or a national carbon output of 145 million tons annually, with our present 97 million population. Our New Year festivity multiplies the said carbon output 2,000 times," disclosed Alvarez.
Alvarez laments: "While a young boy cries-out loud due to his missing fingers, Mother Nature is now choking to death from the deadly carbon."
The Department of Health (DOH) reported that 597 New Year revelers were injured and two deaths, prompting DOH Secretary Francisco Duque to recommend to the national government the complete ban of firecrackers. "“We are recommending the total ban because this is the first time that deaths due to firecrackers have been reported," Duque explained.
"Worldwide, the use of fireworks to welcome the new year is a nuclear-like explosion of CO2 in our already fragile atmosphere, and a thousand more potent than the atomic bomb used in Hiroshima," Alvarez further said.
"The use of fireworks to spice-up celebrations, not only new year festivities but also fiestas and the likes, is not a basic human activity, like travel and power generation. Firecrackers should be banned, the way we would like to ban burning of dried leaves in our backyard every morning," added Alvarez.
"Blowing torotot or banging our palayok and kaldero are good enough to welcome 2010, and as many believe, drive away evil spirits out of our homes and lives," added Alvarez.
Alvarez, Philippine chief negotiator to the Copenhagen climate change global conference, led the Philippine campaign of deep and early cut of carbon emissions, calling for a reduction of 30-40% carbon reduction in 5 years.
Several countries have responded with the Philippine call of "deep and early" cut – Norway, 30%; Brazil 40%; and Korea, 30%.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), thru its chairman, Thailand Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, supported the call of the Philippines for a deep and early cut.
In line with the REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) agenda raised in Copenhagen, Alvarez calls on "all individuals, institutions and commercial establishments, who used fireworks during the New Year revelries, to offset their unnecessary CO2 emissions by planting trees or help in our reforestation drive."
"Forest serves as a carbon sink as it literally feeds on carbon to survive. Out of the original 15 million hectares of global forest cover, we only have now a dwindling 3 to 4 million hectares forest cover," Alvarez added.
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