September 17, 2020 Thursday
MANILA, 18 September 2020 — In celebration of World Bamboo Day today, the Climate Change Commission (CCC) highlighted the role of bamboos in climate change adaptation and mitigation and called for support in unlocking the Philippine bamboo industry’s potential to provide sustainable livelihoods and promote climate resilience in our communities.
World Bamboo Day, initiated during the 8th World Bamboo Congress on September 18, 2009, at Prachan Buri, Thailand, aims to highlight the importance of bamboo towards ensuring sustainable utilization and cultivation of bamboo for new industries in regions around the world, as well as the promotion of its traditional uses and economic benefits for our communities.
The CCC expressed that bamboo propagation is a nature-based solution that can help in poverty alleviation, environmental protection, and climate change mitigation. Bamboo gives off 35% more oxygen than trees and sequesters more carbon (400%) per unit area. It also produces a huge amount of biomass, absorbs heavy metals, conserves water, restores degraded lands, and stabilizes soils against erosion.
According to the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan, the local and global bamboo industry is aligned with 11 of 17 the UN Sustainable Development Goals, including affordable and clean energy, decent work and economic growth, sustainable cities and communities, and climate action.
The CCC noted that this grass plant is flexible, strong, versatile, and fast-growing and can be harvested after only three to five years, compared to thick wood, which can only be harvested usually after 20 years. The Philippines, as one of the world’s top exporters of bamboo, has about 60 known species of bamboo. However, the number of hectares designated as bamboo forest is not enough.
For World Bamboo Day, the CCC urges further research, investments, and support to grow and maximize our Philippine bamboo industry. Propagating bamboos can further create green jobs and resilient enterprises, as well as provide sustainable livelihoods to millions of people in rural areas. Investing on bamboo will transform our people's lives at the grassroots and will pave the way for a cleaner, healthier, and more sustainable future for our country.
