Law and Policy Database

The issuance promulgates the Action Plan on Climate Change of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for the period 2011-2015 and vision to 2050. The overall objective of the Action Plan is to strengthen the capacity for climate change response of agriculture and rural development sector in the period 2011-2015 in order to mitigate the climate change impact and contribute to reduce green house gas emission. Specific objectives are likewise identified. Furthermore, key duties under the Action Plan are also enumerated, with corresponding objectives, contents and key outputs for each duty.

The Long-term Cooperative Action Track of the Cancun Agreements recognizes that climate change presents an urgent and potentially irreversible threat to human societies and the planet, thus requiring an urgent response from all parties. It establishes the Cancun Adaptation Framework, Adaptation Committee Technology Mechanism (Technology Executive Committee and the Climate Technology Centre Network), and the Green Climate Fund.

The Cancun Agreements, which resulted from the 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, consist of one agreement under the Kyoto Protocol track and one under the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action track. The Cancun Agreements under the Kyoto Protocol recognize the indication that achieving the lowest levels assessed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to date and its corresponding potential damage limitation would require Annex I Parties as a group to reduce emissions in a range of 25 to 40% below 1990 levels by 2020.

The National Greening Program sought to address deforestation and declared the State's policy to pursue sustainable development for poverty reduction, food security, biodiversity conservation, and climate change mitigation and adaptation.

The rules and guidelines provide for the implementation of the National Certification Scheme for Digital Signatures in the Philippines.

The Circular mandates the use of 10% blend of bioethanol by volume into all gasoline fuel distributed and sold in the country, subject to certain exempt gasoline grades during a transitory period. Upon full implementation, the requirement shall apply to all gasoline grades sold in the country, without any exempt grades.

The Strategic Programme for Climate Resilience (SPCR) addresses key challenges related to vulnerability to climate change/variability including damaging effects of climate change such as damages from floods, strong winds, high seas, coral bleaching and droughts. The areas of intervention of the SPCR include roads and highways, general agriculture, fishing and forestry, flood protection, participation and civic engagement.

The Memorandum Circular recognized the reorganization of the Build-Operate and Transfer Center to the Public-Private Partnership Center of the Philippines, and the transfer thereof as an attached agency from the Department of Trade and Industry to the National Economic and Development Authority.

The Forestry Management Act designates the Ministry responsible for forestry resource management as the Ministry charged with the administration of the Act. The functions of the Ministry shall include the management of forestry resources, promotion of plantation and farm agro-forestry, and implementation of international forestry-related agreements. It expressly directs the application of the precautionary principle by persons and agencies having responsibilities under the Act.

The Act amends the Environmental Management and Conservation Act with the amendments set out in its schedule. Among the amendments is an additional section directing all persons and agencies having responsibilities under the Act or whose functions may relate to the environment to apply the precautionary principle. It also modifies the provision on penalties for offenses, increasing the penalty for individual offenders and indicating specific penalties for a corporate offender, an individual who has previously committed the offense, and a corporate offender who has previously committed the offense.