The Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Philippine Space Agency this week sealed a partnership to create the national environment and natural resources (ENR) geospatial database.
A memorandum of agreement was signed between Environment Secretary Antonia Loyzaga and PhilSA Director General Dr. Joel Joseph S. Marciano Jr. for a collaborative project of using satellite imagery in creating the national ENR geospatial database, and in other related programs of the DENR.
“A geospatial platform is fundamental for us in terms of establishing the physical basis of our natural resources, and in terms of our wanting to inventory them for strategic and critical development of our country,” Loyzaga said.
The MoA specifically covers two initiatives: the National Greening Program progress monitoring through the use of current and emerging space science and technology applications capabilities in the country, and the establishment of a comprehensive national geospatial database for the Environmental and Natural Resource Accounting Program, which includes the collection of climate information and conduct analysis.
PhilSA will be responsible in developing and generating maps, systems and tools on a national level that analyzes vulnerabilities and impacts of climate change and disasters, among many others.