EMB 7 issues notice on Capitol for unmet ECC conditions for coal ash dump

By Bernadette A. Parco, Oscar C. Pineda and Rizel S. Adlawan

Thursday, June 30, 2011

CAPITOL has allegedly violated four conditions in the environmental compliance certificate (ECC) of its coal ash landfill project at the former Balili property in Barangay Tinaan, City of Naga.

Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) 7 Director Alan Arranguez yesterday issued a notice of violation to Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO) head Adolfo Quiroga.

The ECC violations were:

* Failure to secure a permit to cut coconut trees;
* Failure to set up a P5-million environmental guarantee fund (EGF);
* Non-submission of semi-annual report on project’s compliance with ECC conditions, and;
* Failure to install sand and gravel liner and clay liner.

Address

Arranguez called Capitol to a technical conference on July 12, to discuss the violations.

Quiroga said the Province will address the violations starting today.

He said Capitol’s application for a permit to cut coconut trees is pending at the Philippine Coconut Authority. But he admitted that they have already cut some coconut trees that blocked the access road, which was built on the property.

Provincial Budget Officer Emmie Gingoyon, on the other hand, said she has certified that P5 million will be set aside for the EGF of the project.

As this developed, Governor Garcia challenged environmental groups to find an affordable renewable energy source.

Cheapest

Garcia said energy from coal-fired power plants is still the cheapest option.

She pointed out that Cebu’s demand for power will increase as its economy grows.

“Growth in power demand in Cebu is double the national average,” said Garcia, quoting President Aquino who came to Cebu to inaugurate the 200-megawatt Kepco-SPC coal-fired power plant in Naga last Monday.

Garcia said she supports the development of renewable energy sources, like wind, sun and water. But renewable energy is not cheap, she added.

“The availability of power is a basic ingredient of growth and development,” she said.

Violations

The ECC violations were observed by a team from EMB 7, which inspected the project last April 13 and May 25.

The project was built by the Provincial Government to accommodate the coal ash of the coal-fired power plants of the Korea Electric Co. (Kepco)-Salcon Power Corp. (SPC) in Naga.

In the coal ash landfill project’s ECC, the Province is supposed to put up a P5-million EGF, which will be used to pay for environmental assessments, rehabilitation of affected areas and indemnification for whatever damages the undertaking will cause.

The EMB 7 order said Capitol failed to submit the approved memorandum of agreement for the establishment of the EGF and the MMT for the project.

The MMT is supposed to be composed of representatives from the project proponent, EMB 7, a local environmental nongovernment organization, people's organization, religious organization, KSPC and representatives from other government agencies such as the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and Department of Energy.

Property

The coal ash landfill facility has an area of 23.2 hectares, and sits on the beachfront property purchased by the Province from the Balili family for P98.9 million in 2008.

The purchase became controversial as part of the property is submerged. The Province filed a case in court to recover about P37 million from the Balilis, which is the reported value of the submerged portion of the property.

The coal ash landfill project is the subject of another case filed by environmentalists, which resulted in the issuance of a temporary environmental protection order (Tepo) by the Regional Trial Court Branch 28 in Mandaue City.

In a hearing on the case last Monday, Quiroga told the court that the landfill itself is only seven hectares and the rest of the area will be the site of an economic zone and ecological park.

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on June 30, 2011.