SUAL, Pangasinan - Mayor Roberto Arcinue dared
critics of coal-fired power plant not to patronize electricity produced by the
Sual Power Plant.
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| Brown out in the Philippines. Photo Credit: ABS-CBN News |
“The Save
Sual Movement members should start using reusable energy like solar panel to
show their sincerity in their advocacy and not electricity sourced from coal
power plant,” he said.
The group had been opposing the construction of
coal-fired plants in the locality, claiming that these power generating
facilities are polluting the local environment.
However, they never came up with any evidence or
document to prove their allegation that the existing Sual Coal-Fired Power
Plant being operated by Team Energy is causing any pollution in the surrounding
areas, Arcinue said.
“Kung may pollution sana, wala yang mga hundreds of
fish cages sa tabi ng nasabing power plant,” he pointed out.
This thriving town is home to some 750 world-class
fish cages located in Sual Bay near the power plant that produce about 60
metric tons of bangus (milkfish) every day being sold to major fish markets
like Navotas and Malabon in Metro Manila.
In barangay Pangascasan where the said power plant
is located, farmers have been enjoying good rice and vegetable harvests
averaging from 80 to 120 sacks of rice per hectare.
“Nasaan ang pollution na sinasabi nila?” he said.
Mayor Arcinue stressed that the taxes being
collected from the operation of the power plant enabled the municipality to
become a first class town from being a fourth class municipality.
Since then, the municipal government was able to
implement various development programs and projects that have improved the
lives of the Sualenos.
These programs and projects include a new municipal hall, sport complex, well-paved and well-maintained municipal and
barangay roads, multi-purpose vehicles and health centers including multi-purpose
covered courts for all the barangays, police patrol car and ambulances,
hospital, school buildings, and many more.
With the power plant, hundreds of residents have
found well-paying jobs in the said facility, he added.
The mayor was confident that with the construction
of another coal-fired power plant in barangay Baquioen, more development
programs and projects would be pursued by the municipal government that would
certainly benefit the residents of Sual.
He said a multi-national company from South Korea
is eyeing Sual for the construction of a two-billion US dollars power plant
that would provide employment to no less than two thousand residents.\
The proposed power facility has a generating
capacity of 1,000 megawatts that would greatly boost the country’s power supply
to address the high cost of electricity and growing demand due to the influx of
foreign investors.
Presently, power rates in the Philippines are the third highest in Asia and fourth in
the Asia-Pacific region, said a survey done by the International Energy
Consultants (IEC), an Australia-based consulting firm specializing in Asian
power markets.
IEC Managing Director Dr. John Morris,
who led the study, said the results of the study reflect the period January
2016 compared with January 2012.
The Philippines’s power rates, he added, are also
the 16th highest in the world.
The study cited low generation capacity vis-a-vis growing demand as the main reason
for the high cost of electricity in the
country.
This is why President Duterte welcomed the
construction of coal-fired power plants to address the country’s growing demand
for energy spawned by increasing population and influx of investors.
Coal remains to be the cheapest source of
high-volume electricity in the country.
Mayor Arcinue said that to prove their sincerity in
opposing coal-fired power plants, the officers of the so-called Save Sual
Movement should refrain from using electricity produced by the said power
plant. (PR)
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