1. Adopt climate-risk lens in national planning and policies

• • Promote convergence and policy coherence among national government agencies
  • Operationalize the Geospatial Database Office to develop the National Natural Resources Geospatial Database
  • Natural Capital Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Services
  • Institute risk-based ecosystem management and nature-based solutions
  • Invest in green opportunities by implementing Sustainable Finance Roadmap

Among the reforms implemented by the department is the adoption of a climate-risk lens in planning and policy formulation. This led to the establishment of a National Geospatial Database for natural resources which provides the integration of climate-related and geospatial data for risk-informed planning, policy and decision-making. The Geospatial Database Office catalogs our natural resources including land, forests, water and minerals using satellite images and drones to survey natural and man-made changes within our islands.

2. Increase forest cover

• • Intensify forest protection and anti-illegal logging
  • Identify and map priority areas for reforestation and other forestry investments

3. Conserve protected areas and biodiversity resources

• • Develop and manage Protected Areas
  • Manage coastal and marine resources
  • Strengthen Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and establish MPA networks as
  • key tools to support Blue Economy
  • Conserve and protect wildlife resources

4. Improve air and water quality, and waste management

• • Strengthen enforcement and monitoring of air quality and water quality standards
  • Promote circular economy, stimulate sustainable consumption and production, implement the National Program of Action on Marine Litter
  • Implement the Extended Producers’ Responsibility (EPR) Law
  • Provide technical assistance on solid waste management, including toxic and hazardous wastes

5. Ensure water security and resilience in high-water stressed areas

• • Implement integrated water resources management
  • Improve water resources monitoring and assessment, measurement and data availability
  • Reduce groundwater depletion
  • Mobilize financing for water-resilient infrastructure projects
  • Employ water conservation measures such as use of rainwater harvesting facilities

6. Sustainably and responsibly manage mineral resources

• • Implement sustainable mineral resources development
  • Promote the development of critical minerals, processing and value-adding
  • Intensify compliance monitoring and enforcement of environmental safeguards in mining operations including effective social development management programs

7. Promote effective land management and governance

• • Implement the National Land Title Program to facilitate issuance of patents
  • Digitization and modernization of land information management systems
  • Implement sustainable land management and governance for the remaining undistributed lands