Press Release
SMART gets cited for greenhouse gas management
[Nov. 10, 2008/ Makati City] - Smart Communications Inc. (SMART) was recognized recently for its commitment to climate protection by the Philippine Greenhouse Gas Accounting and Reporting Program (PhilGARP) during simple ceremonies held at the Richmonde Hotel.
PhilGARP trains businesses and organizations on Greenhouse Gas (GHG) management using GHG Protocol standards and tools. A voluntary program, it builds the capacity of participants to make their own GHG inventories and inventory management plans on an annual basis.
PhilGARP cited SMART for its preparation of its Inventory Management Plan Part I and II, GHG Inventory, and GHG Emission Summary. From an initial business pilot group that included 26 companies, 13 were cited for accomplishing some or all of these documents.
“This serves as an opportunity to bring together business, private industry, government organizations, academe and research institutions to recognize that each have been working towards addressing the global issue of climate change,” says DENR Undersecretary Manuel Gerochi who expressed hope that the efforts will be replicated in other companies.
“In essence it’s almost done,” says Atty. Angela Consuelo Ibay, program manager at the Klima Climate Change Center of the Manila Observatory (Klima–MO), PhilGARP’s designated secretariat. “Part of the completion is to publish these documents.”
SMART Network Logistics Operations-Administration and Materials Management Division senior manager Jessie Sarmiento concurred, “If management permits, we plan to include this GHG inventory in the PLDT annual report to serve as proof that we are indeed measuring our GHG emissions and we are targeting to reduce it.”
“SMART’s recognition can be attributed to the company's sincere effort to protect our environment as it pursues its business objectives,” adds Sarmiento. “The accomplishment is that we were able to determine where we are in terms of emissions and inject projects that will help negate the effect of our contribution to the worsening environmental crisis.”
In addition to its involvement with PhilGARP, SMART has also spearheaded numerous environmental campaigns, which have been actively supported by the employees. These include energy-efficiency campaigns, recycling efforts, and tree planting initiatives in line with the company’s ‘green’ goal.
“After this, we are now discussing solid plans on how to offset our carbon footprint. We have plans to establish a group that will look into the company's environmental activities and manage environmental projects,” reveals Sarmiento.
SMART is eyeing the deployment of 74 cell sites powered by renewable energy by the end of the year. Of this figure, 47 are run by wind energy while 27 are hybrid -- using both wind and solar energy.
PhilGARP’s Atty. Ibay said, “We’re hoping more companies will participate. We’re presenting a business case for others – down the line, they will realize certain opportunities like cost reduction or new projects that will be able to offset the emission they are doing.”
Program partners of PhilGARP are Klima-MO, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the Department of Energy (DOE), the World Resources Institute (WRI), the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), and the Philippine Business for the Environment (PBE). It is being supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). @
Photo captions: Above left photo shows SMART’s Jessie Sarmiento giving a talk on Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard to selected SMART employees. Lower right photo shows SMART Network Services Division engineers setting up the wind power controller for a wind-powered cell site.
