COMMENTARY: A Country Deprived of the Ecosystem Services of the Forests
By Reynaldo D. Raluto, MindaNews.com
January 9, 2012

First of two parts

 CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (MindaNews/08 January) — I do not want to understand the tragic event of typhoon “Sendong” and other ecological disasters either as the will of God or as simply part of the fate of the Filipinos whose lives have always been punctuated by a struggle to survive the devastating plagues of nature. I firmly believe that the evils of ecological disaster could not purely be attributed to the natural consequences of our evolutionary world. They also have human causes which can be mitigated. Many of them are anthropogenic and human-induced factors which can be overcome.

Our present situation is challenging us to be always alert and discerning as to the pulse of what is going on in history. A crucial part of our discernment is to listen not only to the cry of the poor but also to the groaning of creation. The latter is quite challenging as it calls us to allow beings on our planet—air, water, energy, earth, living beings—to speak with us. As a conversation partner, nature has to be treated as a subject with a voice. Those who have intimate relationship with nature—such as the indigenous environmentalists and ecological scientists—are able to listen to the voices of nature and discern the message of God in them. Today, they remind us of our ecological sins and warn us of our imminent fate—like Noah and the ancient prophets.

In what follows, let me point out both the natural causes and anthropogenic factors of our ecological crisis. This leads me to portray the Philippine as a country deprived of the ecosystem services of the forests.

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