PB wants DENR to verify findings on air pollution

The provincial board recently asked the Department on Environment and Natural Resources to verify the findings of recent studies stating that the status of air pollution in Metro Cebu has already reached a critical level.

The provincial board, in its resolution, stated that Cebuanos have cause for concern over the findings of the study done by the Land Transportation Office and another private organization.

United States embassy charge d' affaires Darryl Johnson revealed the results of the study during a forum at the University of San Carlos recently, said PB member Jose Maria Gastardo, the author of the resolution.

Gastardo quoted Johnson as saying that the results are verifiable considering that pulmonary diseases rank highly in people with jobs or activities that require constant exposure to the streets.

Gastardo's resolution said the Johnson statement should be taken into consideration because the air pollution issue has been the gist in the debates over the construction of a coal-fired power plant in Naga town.

The DENR should now take action on the issue, raised by Johnson, then furnishes the provincial board the results of the verification, said Gastardo.

Johnson, for his part, had assured that the United States included Cebu in its $9-million air rehabilitation and energy scouring project. - Ferliza C. Contratista