VARIOUS groups led by San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza have submitted a statement of opposition to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) of Negros Occidental with the demand to urgently revoke the Resolution of Non-Objection (Rono) it enacted for the proposed construction of a 300-megawatt (MW) Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) Combined Cycle Power Plant in San Carlos City.
Aliminaza, in a press statement Thursday, July 21, 2022, said they maintained that the resolution of non-objection from the Provincial Board is premature, invalid, and is not representative of the multiple stakeholders from San Carlos who openly objected against the LNG project during the public scoping.
The LNG power plant is being proposed by the San Miguel Corporation-owned Reliance Energy Development Inc.(Redi), the statement said.
Alminaza explained that the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the project is “still under preparation” by the proponent, and that Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Memorandum Circular 22-018 states that local government units cannot issue a letter of no objection without an EIA, therefore deeming the non-objection invalid.
“We appeal to the Board Members of the SP to adhere to their duty in protecting the interests of our people and the health of our environment,” the bishop said, adding that “this is being echoed by our fisherfolk communities in San Carlos who stood up against the project during the public scoping.”
Environmental groups also urged leaders, both from the city and the province, to stand in solidarity with the residents of San Carlos and all stakeholders in protecting Tañon Strait, promoting healthy and sustainable fishing communities, and maintaining the city fossil-free.
“Negros Occidental is known for being the Renewable Energy (RE) Hub of the Philippines, and the continued lack of RE development is becoming questionable. It’s ironic that the vast RE potential of the province remains untapped, while Negrosanons continue to suffer with high electricity prices,” Griderick Alila of Konsyumer-Negros said.
In an earlier statement, various youth-led environmental groups in the province also warned that the project would generate increased shipping traffic that will affect the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape, which has been declared as an Important Marine Mammal Area.
They said the project will also destroy marine habitats, mangroves, and wetlands along the shoreline, generate pollution, expose local communities to various hazards, and would impact the livelihood of coastal communities in the long-term.
For Bianca Montilla, co-convenor of Youth for Climate Hope, Redi’s LNG plant is a great threat to the communities dependent on the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape.
Montilla said noise pollution from shipping activities heavily affects the capacity of dolphins and whales to detect prey, since they use echolocation to navigate the waters.
“Disrupting already fragile ecosystems is nothing but a death blow to our climate-impacted communities and the livelihood of our fisherfolk,” she added.
Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development Deputy Executive Director Av De Torres pointed out that “it is high time our leaders invest in supporting the development of RE infrastructures that have the potential to lower electricity prices, instead of building new power plants dependent on imported fuel, which is highly vulnerable to price shocks from the international market.”
Environment groups stressed that like coal, natural gas and its liquid form LNG is a fossil fuel that creates pollution and greenhouse gasses, which trigger worse climate change.
Falsely touted as a clean alternative to coal, natural gas has also seen much pushback globally as it is primarily composed of a greenhouse gas that can trap heat in the atmosphere 80 times more effectively than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period, contributing to rising global temperatures, they said.
Alminaza claimed that San Miguel Corporation pulled out its coal plants in San Carlos but simply replaced it with another fossil fuel that is no less dangerous.
“We already know that while it is true gas would produce less carbon dioxide than coal, it will instead release large amounts of methane in the atmosphere which can trap heat at a much greater capacity for a period of time,” he said.
The bishop added that “it makes not sense for Negros Occidental to turn to fossil gas when we have overflowing renewables that are more than enough to meet our power needs.” (With PR)