Senator Camille Villar, chair of the Senate Committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Climate Change, asserted the Senate’s commitment to tackling the country’s most pressing environmental and climate challenges as she led the organizational meeting and initial hearing of the said committee on Wednesday.
Villar, the youngest senator of the 20th congress put forward her environmental priorities particularly strengthening climate resilience, curbing plastic pollution brought about by the “sachet economy.” She called on both government and private sectors to work hand in hand in addressing the worsening effects of climate change.
“Flooding has become not just a natural hazard, but a governance challenge that tests our capacity for urban planning, disaster preparedness, and environmental law enforcement,” Villar emphasized. “We must ensure that our laws, including the Solid Waste Management Act and the Extended Producer Responsibility Law, are effectively implemented to create real impact.” She authored the Expanded Producers Responsibility Act in Congress during her time as a representative of Las Piñas.
She also underscored the urgency of protecting endangered species and ecosystems as well as safeguarding the country’s rich biodiversity. “Protecting wildlife means protecting ecosystems, and protecting ecosystems means securing our own future,” she emphasized.
Villar said the committee will closely examine existing environmental policies, many of which are more than two decades old to make them more relevant in today’s context of stronger typhoons, heavier flooding, and rising sea levels.
She further set the tone for a proactive and collaborative Senate panel: “As the saying goes, we do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. Every step we take must be guided by the vision of leaving behind a safer and more sustainable world for the next generation.”
The hearing featured a comprehensive briefing from Environment Secretary Raphael Lotilla, Climate Change Commission Secretary Robert Borje, and other key officials from DENR bureaus and attached agencies, including NAMRIA, NRDC, MWSS, CCC, and PCSD.
The committee is expected to schedule follow-up hearings to assess law implementation, improve environmental governance, and craft stronger policy reforms. ###
