Twenty years ago, the ozone layer depletion resulting to global warning was so far-fetched and so technical that it was considered a domain for scientist only.

I remember that it was a favorite topic in essay writing contests for the Science Month Celebration when I was in high school. Twenty years hence, we are not just reading about it in scientific journals or encyclopedias or hearing about it on the news, we are actually feeling its effects.

In the past few years we heard of the phenomena “La Nina” and “El Nino.” This is basically what is happening with us today. In Luzon, they are already saying Novenas asking for rain while the rains in Baguio are accompanied by ice (hailstorm). While there is no rain in Luzon, in Mindanao some mountainous areas are experiencing landslides due to heavy down pours. And, according to government authorities our freaky weather may result to water rationing, food supply shortage, and an assortment of calamities.

The reviews and predictions of scientific authorities are gloom and frightening. We have been urged to take better care of our environment twenty years ago and even earlier. Now we have more than enough reason to heed the call.