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Posibleng Bataan Nuclear Power Plant revival ni Marcos Jr. ekis sa environmentalists

James Relativo - Philstar.com
Posibleng Bataan Nuclear Power Plant revival ni Marcos Jr. ekis sa environmentalists
This photo taken on April 5, 2022 shows an employee checking switches inside the control room at the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in the town of Morong in Bataan province, north of Manila. The nuclear power plant built in the disaster-prone Philippines during Ferdinand Marcos's regime, but never switched on due to safety fears and corruption, could be revived if his son wins the May 9 presidential poll.
AFP/Ted Aljibe

MANILA, Philippines — Pinalagan ng Kalikasan People's Network for the Environment (Kalikasan PNE) ang plano ni president-elect Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. na buhayin ang isang kontrobersyal na nuclear power plant, bagay na kinatatakutang magdulot ng pinsala sa kalikasan at buhay ng publiko.

Ika-22 lang kasi ng Mayo nang makipagpulong si Bongbong kay South Korean ambassador to Manila Kim Imchul para pag-usapan ang posibleng pagbuhay sa Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP), bagay na ipinatayo noong Martial Law ng diktador at dating Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

"He seems oblivious that the BNPP will entail radioactive wastes such as uranium mill tailings and spent reactor fuel that have costly and catastrophic consequences," ani Leon Dulce, national coordinator ng Kalikasan PNE, Biyernes.

"For thousands of years, we will potentially pay for toxic impacts on our water, land, and health."

Dekada '70 nang simulan ang development ng mahigit $2.2 bilyong BNPP sa layuning magbigay ng kuryente sa Pilipinas. Sa kabila nito, isinara ito dahil sa isyu ng korapsyon at kaligtasan dahil malapit sa mga bulkan gaya ng Pinatubo, Natib at Mariveles. Naging tampok din itong usapin matapos ang Chernobyl disaster sa Ukraine noong 1986.

Sinalubong ng mga protesta ng mga taga-Bataan atbp. probinsya ang nasabing proyekto at hindi na nagamit.

"It seems the only reason Mr. Marcos Jr. intends to revive BNPP is to rehabilitate his family’s legacy, at the cost of causing a potential nuclear meltdown," dagdag pa ni Dulce.

"Has he already forgotten about his rhetoric about wind and other renewable energy sources that are more abundant and sustainable in the Philippines?"

"We call on the Filipino people to prepare to oppose once again this looming attempt to waste billions of pesos of taxpayers’ money for a radioactive disaster worth billions, if not trillions of pesos more in damages waiting to happen."

Kamakailan lang nang sabihin ng state-owned power generation firm na Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) na bukas silang i-update ang kanilang 2017 pre-feasibility study pagdating sa rehabilitasyon ng BNPP lalo na't interesado silang tumulong sa nuclear efforts ng Pilipinas.

Ika-23 lang ng Mayo nang sabihin ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte na umaasa siyang ma-explore ng susunod na administrasyon ni Marcos Jr. ang nuclear energy na sinubukang buuin ng kanyang ama, lalo na't hindi raw "infinite" ang suplay ng langis.

Sa kabila nito, Martes lang nang sabihin ng isang energy expert na naglingkod sa ilalim ni Marcos Sr. na dapat mas pagtuunan ng bansa ang renewable energy kaysa nuclear.

Bagama't sinusubukan ngayon ng bansang patindihin ang decarbonization efforts sa mga dartating na panahon, "coal" pa rin ang dominanteng pinanggagalingan ng kuryente sa Pilipinas na siyang may epekto sa kalikasan.

BATAAN NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

BONGBONG MARCOS

ENVIRONMENT

FERDINAND MARCOS SR.

MARTIAL LAW

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