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AFTER
paying Petron Corp. for the money it spent cleaning up
the oil spill near Guimaras Island last year, the
International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund (IOPCF)
rejected claims for the Philippine government’s
“cash-for-work” program. The same fund also asked the
Coast Guard to explain why its claim is bigger than that
of the petroleum company.
In a
report, the fund said that although some of its
delegates praised the efforts of the regional Department
of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for the said
cash-for-work program, the cost was not admissible for
reimbursement since the measure was not related to the
clean-up operation of the oil spill nor for preventive
measures for future oil spill.
The
regional DSWD asked to be reimbursed by P2 million,
which it said was spent on 1,000 families over a period
of five to seven days last year. Its program centered on
improvements on roads and drainage, food production and
community cleaning.
The
cash-for-work program was the original idea of Petron,
45 percent of which is owned by the government, which it
implemented immediately after the oil spill to give the
affected residents some income instead of handing them
dole-outs as a result of the incident.
“The
executive committee (of IOPCF) agreed with the
director’s conclusion that the DSWD claim in respect of
the ‘cash for work’ program was not admissible and
should be rejected,” the June 12 IOPCF report said.
The
fund, however, reimbursed DSWD some P2.8 million for the
cost of providing relief assistance to P5,400 households
of the affected areas for the project that the agency
carried out in December 2006, or some four months after
the oil spill in
August 11, 2006.
On the
other hand, the fund has asked the Coast Guard to
justify its claim of P439.8 million, which was higher
than the claim of Petron, as a result of its response to
the oil spill incident.
“The [PCG’s]
claim did not have sufficient supporting information to
allow the Club [Shipowners’ Mutual Protection and
Indemnity Association [Luxembourg]] and the Fund to
carry out an assessment. The Club and the Fund have
written to the Coastguard requesting detailed supporting
information in respect of their claim,” the report said.
Incidentally, the fund approved to reimburse Petron some
P118 million, down from the listed firm’s original claim
of P196 million, for the cost of shoreline cleanup. The
entire amount has been paid for by the Fund after the
Shipowners’ Club declared that the company did not
commit any negligence that caused the pollution.
As of
May, the fund has disbursed a total of $3.7 million for
the oil spill, a significant amount went to Petron, some
P169 million for the claims of some 22,323 affected
fisher folks from five municipalities of Guimaras
Island, and other expenses such the underwater survey,
the cost of the boom to contain the oil, among others.
MT Solar
1, owned by Sunshine Maritime Development Corp., sank
some 10 nautical miles south of
Guimaras Island
last year carrying 2,081 tons of industrial fuel oil
owned by Petron.
The
incident was the first involving a vessel entered in the
Small Tanker Oil Pollution Indemnification Agreement
2006, under which the shipowner, Sunshine Maritime,
voluntarily agreed to increase the limitation amount
applicable to the vessel under the 1992 Civil Liability
Convention to £15.8 million (or about $32.1 million).
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