BAGUIO CITY – The Baguio-La Trinidad-Itogon-Sablan-Tuba-Tublay (BLISTT) Airshed Governing Board approved a resolution encouraging the concerned local governments in the BLISTT to implement a Carless Day anytime this November as part of the celebration of Clean Air month.
Reynaldo S. Digamo, regional director of the Cordillera office of the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB-CAR), explained that the members of the BLISTT Airshed Governing Board will appear before the regular sessions of the different city and municipal councils to convince the local officials to approve the implementation of a Carless Day in their areas of jurisdiction to help in significantly reducing the pollutants in the air within the BLISTT localities.
“We want to give emphasis to the celebration of the Clean Air month by implementing a Carless Day in the different BLISTT local governments to underscore the importance of the urgent need to embrace efforts that will significantly reduce pollutants in the air,” Digamo stressed.
Previous studies show that the major pollutants in the air, especially in urban areas around the country, is the bad smoke emitted by motor vehicles plying the major roads daily, thus, the need for concerned local governments to formulate programs to lessen the pollutants in the air in the said areas.
Digamo pointed out they will consult the concerned local governments on where the program can be implemented to make sure that it will focus on the places where the Carless Day will be implemented to empower residents and visitors to be vigilant on the implementation of programs beneficial to the environment.
According to him, the implementation of Carless Day in the different BLISTT localities will serve as the benchmark on how to implement the program for a longer period of time by the concerned local governments.
Several proposals are now pending evaluation and study by the members of the City Council for the implementation of a Carless Day along the whole stretch of Session road, the city’s main road, for a day in a week to contribute in efforts in reducing pollutants in the city’s air.
The EMB-CAR official revealed the air quality in the different measuring points in BLISTT is good to fair which indicates that the air quality in the thickly populated areas in the concerned local governments are still within the allowable limits prescribed under existing laws, rules and regulations.
Digamo underscored by implementing a Carless Day in different places in BLISTT this November, concerned local governments will contribute in efforts by environmentalists to reduce the pollutants, especially the bad smoke emitted by motor vehicles, to improve the air quality in the city.
He expressed optimism that local officials will be receptive on the proposal of the BLISTT Airshed governing board to implement a Carless in their areas of jurisdiction to help improve the state of the environment in the said areas. By Dexter A. See
