Water temperature near Kepco-Salcon normal

CEBU, Philippines - Naga City Mayor Valdemar Chiong has assured that the temperature of the seawater at the front of Kepco-Salcon Power Corporation at 29 degrees Celsius is normal.

"Sakto ra man ang temperature sa tubig, 29 degrees Celsius. Mas init pa gani ang sa gawas," said Chiong.

Chiong said after hearing of reports that the bubbling portion of the municipal waters directly across KSPC's power plants in barangay Colon was at 30.1 degrees Celsius, Vice Mayor Delfin Senor tested the water there and found it was 29 degrees Celsius.

A group of environmental divers from the Knight-Stewards of the Sea, Inc. (Seaknights) last month conducted a test on the bubbling water of the city's municipal waters and discovered that the water temperature in the bubbling area was 30.1 C which Fr. Charlie Orobia, a marine biology student of the

University of San Carlos and the organization's vice president, said is beyond the normal 25 degrees C. Orobia explained that beyond that normal temperature, marine lives inhabiting the area would suffer from thermal pollution.

The bubbling is the result of the water being directly discharged from the plant's underwater pipe.

Seaknights believes that the discharged water was waste water used to cool down the plant's machines and has not been cooled down first, hence, it is still hot when it goes to the sea.

KSPC however denied this and said that the water, which has chlorine bleach in it, is used in declogging the pipe to prevent it from getting rustic.

The presence of chlorine in the seawater however did not bother Chiong despite complaints from fishers of fish kill in the area.

Chiong however said he "may" have the water tested "soon."