Monday, November 26, 2007 Guv supports Tañon drill By Edmund B. Sestoso
Amid oppositions, Governor Emilio Macias II supports the drilling of the Tañon Strait by the Japan Exploration Corporation (Japex) and the Department of Energy.
Several officials of the province including Vice Governor Jose "Petit" Baldado and Bais City Mayor Hector "Tata" Villanueva have been opposing the continued exploration of the Tanon Strait.
The exploration had officially resumed last November 15.
Representatives from Japex headed by Shigehiro Moriya and Senen Lazaro, together with DOE Visayas Field Officer Antonio Labios and Andres Pangilinan, paid a courtesy call on the governor. They said that initially drilling will start between the areas of Pinamungahan and Aluginsan on-shores, located north of Cebu Island.
Governor Macias clarified that while he is not oppose to the project and as it is not within the territorial jurisdiction of Negros Oriental, he wants the rights of the residents to be respected and the safety of those living in the affected areas ensured. Macias also told Japex to seriously consider all the environmental concerns.
Macias is hoping that the latest exploration would yield positive results. He also asked them to be careful against the possibility of an oil spill.
Japex and DOE officials gave the assurance that all those concerns are properly addressed as shown in all the engineering and technical designs of the project.
Japex officials told Macias that as a member of the International Spill Organization, it has no records of oil spill in its 50 years in the oil industry worldwide.
JAPEX chose the Pinamungahan area as other areas are of "shallow gas oil" which is considered dangerous.
The company officials also explained that they chose to drill along the Pinamungahan and Aluginsan area because this is where they noticed the prominent presence of oil sticks.
Presence of oil sticks is among the positive indicators of the possible sources of oil deposits.
The ongoing drilling activity will determine the volume of possible oil deposits in the area.
Japex and DOE officials have been conducting information drive in Negros Oriental particularly in Dumaguete City all the way to Guihulngan City.
The seismic survey on the shores of Calatrava, Negros Occidental to La Libertad in Negros Oriental yielded not so impressive results in terms of possible oil deposits.
