Fisherfolk hold a protest in the waters of Batangas City on April 22, Earth Day to denounce the expansion of fossil gas plants and liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in the area.
Mara Manuel for Center for Energy, Ecology and Development
Dominique Nicole Flores - Philstar.com
August 5, 2025 | 7:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Who should pay the price for environmental destruction? The answer is a no-brainer for most Filipinos: corporations whose actions have contributed to disasters.
A recent study commissioned by Greenpeace International and Oxfam International found that 84% of Filipino respondents support taxing corporations for environmental damage contributing to wildfires, floods, droughts and health issues.
Filipinos also overwhelmingly reject passing costs to individual consumers, whose environmental impact is significantly smaller than that of enabling firms and policies.
Instead, three in five believe oil and gas companies should shoulder the tax burden, while nearly one-fourth favor taxing businesses in general.
Impact on Philippines
The Philippines has become a showcase for climate extremes, with floods submerging towns for days and temperatures hitting record highs.
Beyond local factors like inadequate waste management and flood control, experts have identified a more uncontrollable force: climate change exacerbated by continued fossil fuel use and expansion.
The effects of worsening global warming are visible, with cities facing stronger storms more frequently and even more rainfall regardless of weather patterns. Extreme heat has also resulted in more class suspensions in recent years as temperatures breach 50°C.
The Philippines endured a brutal July as storms and an enhanced southwest monsoon unleashed torrential rains across Luzon and Visayas.
Four consecutive tropical cyclones — “Bising,” “Crising,” “Dante” and “Emong” — battered the islands alongside the habagat, leaving 254 local governments with no choice but to declare a state of calamity.
Due to the last three storms, classes were suspended for a week in several areas where floodwaters were waist-deep and even worse in other areas.
Climate justice sought
Filipinos are all too familiar with the effects of climate change, and environmental watchdogs say the survey demonstrates the growing urgency to demand climate justice for vulnerable nations like the Philippines.
“The poll results affirm what we’ve known for a long time: Filipinos have a strong sense of justice and majority support taxing the climate polluters to compensate for the damages they cause,” Oxfam Pilipinas Climate Justice portfolio manager Cheng Pagulayan said in a statement.
These taxes should rightfully go to the vulnerable communities most impacted by the climate crisis and to supporting community-based renewable energy investments,” he added.
How should the taxes be imposed? About 79% of Filipinos said the government should not just raise taxes on oil and gas companies, but also require revenues be directed toward communities most affected by the climate crisis.
Meanwhile, 81% called on the government to close loopholes that have allowed wealthy individuals and international firms to evade financial and ecological accountability.
At least three in five Filipinos also believe the government is not doing enough to curb the political influence of wealthy and polluting industries.
Only in his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) did President Bongbong Marcos slam the billions poured into flood control projects that failed to prevent recent flooding, seeking an immediate audit and review of their implementation.
Right to seek damages. The study’s findings come as the Philippines reels from recent storms and as the International Court of Justice (ICJ) affirms that vulnerable nations have the right to seek damages from major polluting companies and states.
A nationwide survey commissioned by Greenpeace and Oxfam and conducted by Dynata from May 9 to 28 sampled 1,200 Filipino adults, with a margin of error of ± 2.83%.
No comments:
Post a Comment