Expert pushes for net-zero pledge as decarbonization takes spotlight at NAST 48th scientific meeting

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Filipino scientist from the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST-PHL) Dr. Raymond Girard R. Tan, on Wednesday said the Philippines needs a net-zero emissions pledge that will serve as the country’s guide for different policy actions in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Dr. Tan is a fellow of The World Academy of Sciences and an academician of the NAST PHL. He specializes in process systems engineering and process integration and is best known as the co-developer of carbon emissions pinch analysis.

According to the World Resources Institute, a net-zero emissions pledge is a formal public commitment by governments, corporations, or organizations to achieve a balance between the greenhouse gases they emit and the amount they remove from the atmosphere.

Sources across the web said that while the Philippines has not formally committed to a nationwide net-zero target by a specific year, it has submitted a Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement, committing to reduce or avoid greenhouse gas emissions by up to 75 percent for 2020–2030.

The Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change. It was adopted by 195 Parties at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris, France, in December 2015.

“What the Philippines needs is a net-zero pledge. Such a pledge will be a north star that we can use to guide different policy actions to decouple the past of the Philippine economy from its future,” Dr. Tan said in a plenary session during the 48th Annual Scientific Meeting.

“Now, the reason for that is, having a net-zero emissions pledge actually cascades downwards from the planetary scale to the national scale down to individual corporations,” he added.

Dr. Tan said the world produces about 40 billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions and other greenhouse gases per year, and the problem lies in turning those emissions into zero by 2050, under the Paris Agreement. This global ambition has to be broken up and turned into national ambitions, hence the need for a formal commitment to net-zero emissions.

However, while most of the countries in the world have net-zero pledges that align with the Paris Agreement, he said the bad news is that the Philippines is not one of these countries, along with Timor-Leste from the ASEAN region.

Moreover, a report from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) published in 2024 cited data from the Climate Change Commission which showed that the Philippines’ total greenhouse gas emissions in 2020 had reached 204.33 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), which means this includes methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases.

“In the Philippines, as in most developing countries, it's still not well understood that the ultimate solution that will come, perhaps decades from now, is the phase out of fossil fuels. This doesn't need to happen in the next 10 years, but we need to get the ball rolling. And fortunately, we have actually gotten the ball rolling by having a reasonably ambitious energy plan,” Dr. Tan said.

To prove that the Philippines can achieve a net-zero goal, Dr. Tan shared his collaboration project with Malaysia, the UK, and Japan, using a software model for simulating a virtual environment.

“We looked at the Philippines. Actually, we looked at just Luzon as a subset of the Philippines. But we considered two scenarios, which were calibrated based on the Philippine energy plan. What we demonstrated with the model, with whatever constraints and assumptions we used, net zero is achievable for the Luzon grid with a mix of different technologies that include renewables, but also keeping some of the existing power plants in play for some time, with what is known as CO2 capture and storage,” Dr. Tan said.

This initiative, along with a systems engineering perspective, is a way for the country to establish a scientifically credible decarbonization pathway that can rapidly reduce emissions and provide universal access to safe and affordable energy to supply, according to Dr. Tan.

Meanwhile, DOST Secretary Renato U. Solidum Jr. vowed to make science, technology, and innovation more responsive, more accessible, and more inclusive—ensuring that the benefits of every innovation reach not only the major centers of growth but also the communities and sectors that need them most.

“Through our support for frontier technologies, emerging industries, and transformative research, we are equipping the country to respond to global shifts while creating new opportunities for sustainable development. Equally important is our continuing effort to strengthen collaboration among the academe, research institutions, industry, local governments, and communities,” Solidum said.

With the theme, “UNSDGs: Science, Technology and Innovation for Sustainable Development”, the 48th Annual Scientific Meeting dealt with the United Nations

Sustainable Development Goals, assessing how science has and will contribute to their realization.

It provides a platform for dialogue, collaboration, and forward thinking, bringing together the country's scientists and experts to exchange ideas, challenge assumptions, and generate evidence-based solutions to the complex issues facing our nation and the world.

The National Academy of Science and Technology is one of the attached agencies of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) aimed at providing science-based, innovative, and inclusive solutions across four strategic pillars: human well-being, wealth creation, wealth protection, and sustainability. These pillars embody the mantra OneDOST4U: Solutions and Opportunities for All. For more information, visit www.nast.dost.gov.ph. (By Claire Bernadette A. Mondares, DOST-STII)