SILAKBO Awareness Campaign

Santa Rosa City, Philippine

Background&Urban Challenges 

The city of Santa Rosa has become the center of industrialization and urbanization in the southern part of the Philippine island of Luzon. The city is characterized by its vibrant, roaring economy, hence its mascot - the lion. This has changed the community landscape of the city. Santa Rosa City is now the new home for not only various industrial and urban development estates, but also for diverse companies, from car manufacturing to the food and beverage sector. The rapid development of Santa Rosa has already significantly increased the number of migrants and workers, and it is bound to boost the total population, number of vehicles and existing infrastructure. This economic progress has given the city remarkable fame and recognition, but it also entails a significant environment cost.

With the fast pace development, Santa Rosa is now at risk for further damages brought by the worsening effects of climate change. These vulnerabilities include strong typhoons, extreme rain events and an increased mean temperature.

In particular, industrialization has reduced the natural capacity of the Santa Rosa Watershed to retain water and hold rainfall, leading to higher flood peak discharge and incidence of flooding. This especially damages the old town center and lakeshore barangays, where the majority of the population resides. In addition, it has reduced the groundwater recharge that will lead eventually to water scarcity in the future, threatening the increasing demand for water by the growing population and industries. Based on the 2010 figures, the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) has approved agro-industrial permits with a total volume of 178.50 million cubic meters of water abstraction per year-- more than 1.5 times the annual recharge rate of 106 million cubic meters of the Santa Rosa Watershed (World Wide Fund for Nature Philippines).

Alarming as it is, the issues regarding groundwater extraction, greenhouse gas emissions, and waste generation all exacerbate climate change. The urban heat island effect is especially impactful in Santa Rosa, which experiences much warmer weather than the surrounding region. Because the UHI is a major challenge faced by many cities, collaborative efforts with nearby towns and cities would be beneficial in addressing the issues associated with the causes and effects of climate change.

Objectives

The City of Santa Rosa's vision is as follows:

1. Display progressive, proactive and efficient governance;

2. Create a balance between economic development and the protection of the environment;

3. Become a model city in sustainable development.

The City's mission is to attain total human development through an integrated strategy anchored on poverty alleviation, capacity building, promotion of health and wellness, protection of the environment and maintenance of a peaceful community.

A massive awareness information, education and communication (IEC) campaign is essential to convey the urgency of this issue. This project is anticipated to be a long-term initiative that will continue for the next several years.

Solution Descriptions

In 2009, the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) launched Santa Rosa's first massive environmental awareness campaign. This was an engaging way of taking part in the global celebration of Earth Day: SIkad (bike), LAKad (walk), takBO (run) form to make SILAKBO.

SILAKBO gathers environmental enthusiasts towards a common goal of preparing the current and future generations with more effective environmental management strategies. It aims to promote environmental responsiveness and calls for a global effort in addressing climate change.

In order to reach out to new individuals and communities, invitations were being sent through email and mass text messaging to reach as many runners and bikers as possible. Social media, namely Facebook, was also a huge help in terms of promotion and spreading our objectives and commitment to protect the Sta. Rosa Watershed through SILAKBO.

For nine years, thousands of runners and bikers every year from government institutions, schools, civic organizations, industries, business establishments, bikers' groups and individuals participated in SILAKBO. In 2014's theme "SILAKBO Goes Beyond the Distance - Run and Plant a Tree", SILAKBO took initiative to not only reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions but also enhance its carbon sink capacity by planting trees after reaching the finish line. Additionally, businesses also provided financial support for the event. A maximum of 100 seedlings are planted for each sponsor with an estimated absorption of 800 tons of carbon dioxide (tCO2) per year.

The proceeds of SILAKBO go towards the Save Silang-Sta. Rosa River Foundation, Inc. (S3R2), a non-profit organization that protects and rehabilitates the Sta. Rosa Watershed. S3R2 is composed of the four LGUs within the watershed (cities of Santa Rosa, Biñan and Cabuyao in Laguna and Silang in Cavite), in addition to different business locators. SILAKBO leads the way towards strengthening linkages with various stakeholders and organizations in river protection and conservation.

For its tenth year, SILAKBO was held on April 22, 2018 at Greenfield City with the bike trail passing through Silang, Cavite, one of the LGUs within the watershed. This year's theme was "SILAKBO 10 - Beyond our Commitment to Sustainability: Celebrating a decade of environmental stewardship and governance for the Santa Rosa Watershed". The theme placed a special focus on three of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals: clean water and sanitation (#6), sustainable cities and communities (#11) and climate action (#13).

Result & Reflections

In 2012, S3R2 was able to establish an ecological profile of the Silang-Santa Rosa River with technical assistance from University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) experts. The study aims to provide stakeholders with baseline data for the protection-conservation-cum restoration program of the 27-km river. This will serve as reference for policy makers and program developers towards the creation of efficient strategies for the river protection.

Throughout the years, SILAKBO has increased environmental awareness in the city community. A few of the successful environmental programs that have been implemented by the City Government include:

• charcoal briquetting facility for waste reduction

• poster-making contest for environmental awareness

• school-based ecological solid waste management program for public and private schools

• integration of solid waste management in elementary curriculum by the Toyota Autoparts Phils., Inc. (TAP)

• distribution of garbage bins to public schools by Mitsubishi Motors Phils. Corp.

• 5-Year Study on Sta. Rosa Watershed Management funded by Coca-Cola Bottlers Phils., Inc.

• adoption of regulated ban of plastic bags and styrofoam as food containers by malls and business establishments.

Moreover, SILAKBO is leading industries to actively participate in the Santa Rosa Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventory. The GHG Inventory manages and reduces emissions in the City by deciding on and acting upon solutions to address it. With their own initiatives, these industries have taken the first steps towards becoming more energy efficient through reduced electricity and fuel consumption. Many also adopt the reduce-reuse-recycle programs to reduce solid waste generation and lower the overall GHG emissions of the City.

The success of SILAKBO can be attributed to stakeholders from Santa Rosa, surrounding cities, and municipalities within the Santa Rosa Watershed. In addition, different locators are sponsoring runners and bikers from their companies to foster healthy living. Throughout the years, SILAKBO has brought together runners and bikers from all sectors into a single community - all committed towards a more eco-friendly future.

The use of information and communication technology (ICT) to enhance an efficient conduct of SILAKBO throughout the process is essential. Sharing information with the public to reach every stakeholder is easier through emails and social media. This improves the quality of information dissemination rendered by the City Government to promote environmental awareness.

A major challenge faced was encouraging the return of past participants from previous years. Luckily, this issue regarding data management was resolved with the presence of social media like Facebook, which makes it easier to release announcements and updates for the awareness campaign. Other minor challenges that SILAKBO has faced include shifts in company management and government administration.

With the completion of year 10, SILAKBO plans on introducing two more LGUs such as Biñan and Cabuyao in order to further help promote environmental stewardship.