By Jonathan L. Mayuga
Environment Secretary Ramon J.P. Paje on Wednesday declared that there will be no new coal-fired power plants in the province of Palawan under his watch.
Speaking during the First Philippine Environment Summit at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) chief said he will not grant any more application for environmental compliance certificates (ECCs) for such development projects to protect and conserve the province against coal.
As a coterminous Cabinet appointee, Paje is expected to remain to his DENR post until President Aquino steps down from the Palace in June.
“There will be no more coal power plants in Palawan. Or at least, I will not sign any ECC for coal plants in Palawan,” he said. Paje made the remark, as he reported to the participants the state of the Philippine environment, where he underscored the need to sustain the gains of proenvironment policies initiated by the Aquino administration.
In an interview, he said there are several applications for ECCs in Palawan which, he said, will not be granted by the DENR, at least under his watch.
“First, the people of Palawan strongly oppose coal. LGUs [local government units] and NGOs [non-governmental organizations] oppose it. Second, this policy is to protect and conserve Palawan’s environment,” he said.
In Mindanao it is understandable to construct coal-fired power plants, because of the energy requirement, Paje said.
“Sa Mindanao, it is okay to put up coal [power plants], because of the energy requirement. Kailangan naman talaga,” he said, adding that Palawan needs to be protected, being the country’s last ecological frontier.
Palawan’s natural forest remains intact, even as other provinces in many parts of the country have suffered from decades of environmental destruction mainly because of illegal logging.
Palawan is also rich in potential renewable-energy sources, and environmental activists are pushing for the development of hydropower and solar-power projects in the province rather than “dirty coal.”
Palawan is home to unique species of flora and fauna, but is one of the country’s biodiversity hot spots, as well, because of illegal-wildlife trade.
Two of the country’s most famous tourist attractions—the Tubbataha Reef and the Puerto Princesa Underground River—are in Palawan. Both have been declared as United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage Site.
Palawan is being eyed as host to several nickel-mining projects, which call for the construction of coal-fired power plants to support the power requirements of mining operation.
During a brief talk, the DENR chief said the Aquino administration has succeeded in reversing the trend of environmental degradation as far as forestry is concerned, owing to the total log-ban policy of the Aquino administration and the successful implementation of the National Greening Program (NGP).
He urged summit participants to help sustain the gains of Executive Order (EO) 23, that bans harvesting of timber in natural and residual forests; and EO 26 which establishes the NGP. The NGP, he said, has gained recognition for the Philippines by the United Nations-Food and Agriculture Office for being No. 5 worldwide among countries reporting forestry gains from 2010-2015, at an average of 240,000 hectares per year representing 3.5 per cent of the 2010 forest area.
“Sana kahit iba na ang DENR secretary, ituloy pa rin ang total log ban. Kayo ba papayag na ma-lift ang total log ban?” he asked participants.
Paje said he supports the move to strengthen the policy against illegal logging through legislation.
From 2010, the time the Aquino administration took over, he said the number of illegal logging hot spots has also gone down from 197 to just 23, owing to the intensified operation of the Anti-Illegal Logging Task Force created by virtue of EO 23.
Through the NGP, Paje said the Aquino administration has so far reforested over 1 million hectares and planted more trees than any administration over the past 40 years.
Likewise, Paje also supports the idea of legislating the policy declaring “no-go zones” for mining under EO 93.
President Aquino’s mining policy has made 84 percent of the country total land area “off limits” to mining, and such policy, he said, should stay to protect the country’s protected areas against destructive mining activities.
While proud of the DENR’s accomplishment in terms of forestry and fighting the illegal-logging menace, Paje expressed dismay over the DENR’s poor performance in implementing the Solid Waste Management Act and the Clean Air Act.
He said the DENR is now in the process of readying charges against LGUs for failing to shut down open dumps and controlled dumps within their jurisdiction. Combined, he said, there are still 440 open dumps and 180 controlled dumps in various parts of the country that need to be shut down.