Do brgys near coal-fired power plant have environmental woes?

ILOILO CITY , Philippines   â€” The Panay Energy Development Corporation (PEDC) is one of the top taxpayers in Iloilo City but this will not stop the City Council to conduct series of consultative meetings to know the sentiments of other neighboring barangays located near the firm’s 164-megaWatt coal-fired power plant.

These meetings were conducted after PEDC aired its plan to build a 150-mW coal-fired power plant beside its present plant at Brgy. Ingore in La Paz district of this city.

City Councilor Leoni Gerochi, chair of the environment and public utilities committee, called for the consultative meeting, starting last week, to determine the existing problems of these barangays near the power plant and, if there are any, to reach possible solutions.

Gerochi met with Councilors Lex Tupas and Eduardo Peñaredondo, PEDC representatives Rex Debuque and Gil Altamira, Randy Pastolero of Panay Electric Cooperatice (PECO), and three village chiefs Joel Jaboneta of Ticud, Jonathan Jalandoni of Ingore and Estela Audrada of Banuyao, all in La Paz district.

“As long as there is an objection on the proposed additional coal-fired power plant, the City Council wants to get the sentiments of the public. Even if the City Council has no authority to conform or deny the proposal since it is already under the DENR, we are hoping that the department will also consider whatever opinion we have,” he said.

Gerochi said the meeting would gather more data from the directly-affected residents especially on health matters, adding that what worried him most are those ashes coming from coal-fired power plant, which could trigger health risks to residents.

Based on PEDC report, it has now 10 hectares of ash pond somewhere in La Paz where coal ashes are being piled to last for four years. Gerochi however said if PEDC will have another coal-fired plant, it would mean that the firm has to look for an additional 10 hectares or more within the city to accommodate the added ashes.

PEDC is producing every day 80 metric tons of ashes and waste materials from its power plant. “Iloilo City is heavily populated and if these ashes will be dumped here what would be the environmental implications? The more ashes, the more problem in the future,” Gerochi said.

Gerochi said PEDC claimed that the additional plant will provide the power supply requirement of Iloilo City and neighboring provinces in Panay Island by 2016 but he said the existing 164-mW power plant was constructed to provide power supply in Iloilo City until 2016, based on feasibility study submitted by PEDC before the first plant was built. 

“It means that the proposed new power plant will not only cater to power shortage of Iloilo City but also other provinces in Western Visayas,” he said, citing the 32.5-mW excess power being sold to the market, which only showed that there has been no power shortage in Iloilo.

PEDC vice president for operation Petronilo Madrid, for his part, said the firm is now finalizing its memorandum of agreement with a cement factory in Manila before the construction of another coal-fired. Part of PEDC plans is to convert the coal fly ash and backfill materials into cements or hollow blocks.   (FREEMAN)