ENVIRONMENTAL advocates in Cagayan de Oro City on Friday staged a prayer vigil and candlelighting activity at the Provincial Capitol Grounds to echo out hopes for thevictims of local typhoons and further amplify calls for urgent local climate action.
The Cagayan de Oro City action led by Power for People Coalition and WaGas alongwith groups Nature Crusaders of Xavier University, Mundomuna USTP, and AgropolisS&T Park/Agreenergi is part of a coordinated national effort across the country for theGlobal Day of Action against Fossil Fuels.
This is in alignment to a global call incoordination with the ongoing UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan.
“It cannot be denied that the ravaging typhoons, contaminated natural resources,and rising temperatures are some of the few effects caused by using non-renewableenergy both at the expense of nature and the consumers,” said P4p co-organizerand Agropolis S&T Park/Agreenergi manager Clint Pacana.
Cagayan de Oro City was severely impacted by the destruction of Bagyong Sendongin December 2011.
It is the most vulnerable city in Misamis Oriental, facing the growing effects of the climate crisis. Misamis Oriental is host to three coal-firedpower plant companies: Minergy., FDC and STEAG State Power, with one plant planning for an expansion despite a coal moratorium.
It is the province with thegreatest number of neighboring coal-fired power plants in Mindanao.”
Although we are transitioning to renewable energy, it is not at the speed and scaleneeded to keep global tenperatures at 15 as indicated by the Paris Agreement.Using fossil-fuels for energy must end now. The worsening climote and morefrequent storms caused by excessive carbon emissions is nature’s ultimatum to us,” Pacana said.
Other organizations who joined the public action led by Power for People Coalition, the lntegral Ecology Ministry of the Archdiocese of CDO and WagGas including DAKILA CDO and the Safer River Life Saver Foundation, Inc.
