DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 16 October) — Mindanao is far from being “energy self-sufficient,” an environmental group said on Saturday, as the island’s power mix now comprises 69% non-renewable sources.
Environmental lawyer Mark Peñalver, executive director of the Interface Development Intervention (IDIS), said, in an interview on Saturday, that the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions are from the energy sector with voracious demand for fossil fuels and fuel-based products.
“Electricity and other energy production are among the top/largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions. This is not a surprise considering that our energy is sourced from fossil fuels or fossil-fuel-based sources,” he said.
Engr. Nilo Geroche, director of the Department of Energy-Mindanao Field Office, earlier this week said non-renewal sources are from coal and oil-based, comprising 51% and 18%, respectively, of the island’s electricity mix.
He said the hydro sources, which previously supplied 70% of Mindanao’s power mix, contributed only 26%, solar at 2%, geothermal at 2% and biomass at 1% of the island’s total capacity mix.
Geroche said the supplies of coal and oil in the Philippines are imported. For coal, he said 97% came from Kalimantan Indonesia.
He said the agency noted a significant increase in the price of coal imports.
He added that this could be the reason why cost of power in Mindanao is increasing despite being regulated by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).
“I understand that all of us are suffering from high prices in the electricity,” Geroche said.
Peñalver pushed for the implementation of the Renewable Energy Act, which aims to enable the Philippines to be energy self-sufficient by utilizing renewable energies such as solar and wind.
“With non-renewable energy projects left and right, i.e., waste-to-energy and coal, Philippines is far from being energy self-sufficient,” he added.
Peñalver said if the trend continues, Mindanao will largely contribute to the “national and global emissions of greenhouse gases thereby contributing to the impacts of climate change.”
The group previously opposed to the establishment of a waste-to-energy (WTE) project in the city as it would generate more sources of “unclean” power.
He said some local politicians pushing for this project want to put up WTE not only to address solid waste management but also increase power generation for this city.
“In reality, what they are after is energy generation and we don’t want our energy to be ‘unclean.’ In effect, we will contribute to carbon emissions. WTE can cause our carbon emissions and carbon footprint to shoot up. Apart from that, this is not really the sustainable solution. We are just creating another problem,” he added.
According to City Environment and Natural Resources, around 600 to 800 tons of wastes are generated daily.
He believed that a WTE project would only encourage people to generate more wastes to keep the facility running.
“The emissions from a WTE are carcinogenic – dioxins and furans. These can put the lives of the people in danger – not only the environment but also the people as well,” he said.
In a statement on September 19, Peñalver said a study conducted by Dr. Jorge Emmanuel, a professor of environmental science and engineering at the Silliman University in Negros Oriental, found that WTE incinerators release large amounts of highly toxic substances called dioxins and furans into the air.
Emmanuel was former chief technical adviser on global environment projects of the United Nations Development Program.
The group added that inhalation of dioxins and furans causes an “increased risk of tumors, cancer, asthma, and other fatal diseases.” (Antonio L. Colina IV/ MindaNews)
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