The Manila Times
May 29, 2014 7:13 pm
by ERNIE ESCONDE
Fishermen and residents on Wednesday found dead fishes floating in the sea near Kitang III in Barangay Luz-Kitang II located near the Bataan Thermal Power Plant (BTPP).
This was confirmed by Councilman Francis Abelojar, chairman of the Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries, who said collected fish and oil samples were brought to the municipal agriculture office for testing.
“Nananawagan kami sa concerned government agency na bigyan kami ng karapatan na makapasok sa planta ng National Power Corporation (Napocor) upang matukoy kung anong kemikal ang dumadaloy at malaman kung may toxin ito [We are calling on the concerned government agency to allow us to enter the Napocor plant so we can identify the chemical and determine if this is toxic],” Abelojar said.
The oil reportedly originated from the mouth of a big pipe in the compound of the closed and non-operational thermal plant.
“I’m sure the oil came from the plant,” said Barangay Chairman Oscar Peralta of Luz-Kitang II who visited the area.
He said the leader of fishermen in the area told him that their livelihood was affected by the oil spill. About 200 families live in the village and they feared the fish could be dangerous.
“Nag-aalaala ang mga mangingisda na baka may lason ang isdang mahuli nila at makain [The fishermen are worried that their catch is poisonous],” Peralta said.
“Saan sila kukuha ng ikabubuhay ngayon? [What will they do now for a living?],” he added.
A team from the Philippine Coast Guard in Lamao, Limay tried to enter the BTPP but were prevented from doing so by security guards.
Villager Marcelino Ebnace collected some fish, cooked them, and gave this to his dog but the latter would not touch them.
He said it was the first time that a fish kill occurred there. source
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