Borongan diocese urges environmental protection on Yolanda anniversary

The Diocese of Borongan on Sunday, 8 November, called for stronger environmental protection to prevent a repeat of the devastation caused by super typhoon Yolanda in 2013, which claimed more than 6,000 lives.

In a message marking the typhoon’s 13th anniversary, the diocese urged communities to reject destructive mining, protect trees and mangroves, reduce waste, prepare for disasters, support vulnerable groups, and push for responsible environmental policies.

“Let us act with care for our common home: reject destructive mining, plant and protect our trees and mangroves, reduce waste, prepare our families and parishes for disasters, support those most vulnerable, and make our voices heard for just and responsible policies,” the diocese said.

“Let us begin in our homes, parishes, schools, and communities,” it added.

The diocese also remembered those who died and expressed gratitude to the people and organizations that helped affected communities recover.

“We continue to entrust the souls of the victims to the compassionate hands of God, and the grieving families to his consoling heart,” it said.

Recalling the disaster, the diocese said the anniversary should not bring people back to the horror and fear of the typhoon, but to the hope that emerged afterward.

“We go back to the hope and widow it left us,” the statement read.

The diocese stressed that remembering Yolanda and its aftermath was not enough, saying the disaster should serve as a call to action amid worsening environmental concerns.

“Yolanda asks something of us today, in the midst of an environmental emergency that grows more urgent each year,” it said.