‘Coal plants to kill 50,000 in 25 years’

• Source: http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/coal-plants-to-kill-50000-in-25-years/
• Wednesday, July 22, 2015

By Marvyn N. Benaning (Correspondent)

FORMER Puerto Princesa Mayor Edward S. Hagedorn has warned that the untrammeled operation of coal-fired power plants will kill 50,000 Filipinos in 25 years.

This death toll, he and fellow environmentalist Gina Lopez said, is more than that of Typhoon Yolanda, or the possible 7.2-magnitude earthquake that may rattle the West Valley Fault in Luzon.

Hagedorn assailed the Aquino administration for not taking a well-studied approach to power generation and noted that it has been opting for the easy way out in addressing the country’s power needs.

In media briefing sponsored by the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice (PMCJ), Power for People Campaign Network (P4P), Hagedorn and Lopez asserted that coal will continue to kill more and more people unless the country shifts to sustainable renewable energy (RE).

They vowed to secure one million signatures against coal-powered plants by November 10 and submit the same to the government to stop the proliferation of such power plants.

The Department of Energy (DOE) continues to encourage investment on coal-fired power plants although the US and other European countries are now shutting down coal-fired power plants.

Many international institutions have also called on countries to veer away from coal power and fossil fuel, like the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Even Pope Francis, head of the Roman Catholic Church, has weighed in on the issue and sought an end to the use of dirty and non-RE sources.

According to the Clean Air Task Force, an estimate of 13,200 premature deaths, 9,700 additional hospitalizations and 20,000 heart attacks in US were predicted yearly owing to existing coal-power plants.

The total value of all of these health effects amounts to more than $100 billion per year.

On the other hand, the 2015 Coal Atlas, published by Germany’s Heinrich Böll Foundation, stated that in Europe, more than 18,000 people die every year owing to air pollution caused by coal production and coal power plants.

This is why US and Europe are currently phasing out their coal power plants, Lopez said.

“But, instead of doing the same, the DOE is going against its mission of securing sustainable energy sources and is still approving coal operating contracts and building new coal power plants. To date, under the Aquino administration, a total of 59 new coal plants have been approved for construction and 118 coal mining permits have been given. Another 15 more coal-power projects are in the pipeline for approval,” Hagedorn added.

“The effects are no longer invisible. Recently, nine miners died as a coal mine operated by the Semirara Mining Corp. in Caluya, Antique, collapsed. Two years ago, a similar incident occurred involving the same corporation and five miners were killed. To add insult to injury, just months after the 2013 blast, Semirara began the expansion of its coal plant in Batangas,” the PMCJ said.

Residents near coal power plants, such as these also run the risk of other health effects, such as coronary heart disease stroke and even loss of intellectual capacity due to ingestion of mercury, according to a report from Physicians for Social Responsibility.

“The government can no longer turn a blind eye to these accidents. To play ignorant would be an insult to the Filipino people seeking justice and accountability from these exploitative corporations. Filipinos shouldn’t have to pay the price for corporate greed, not with their money and certainly not with their lives. It is time to reject the construction of new coal plants, start decommissioning old ones, and shift toward more sustainable and renewable forms of energy,” the PMCJ said in a statement.

“The 1 million signature campaign concretizes our unyielding stand against coal investment and coal projects. We enjoin everyone to be a part of this campaign, which we intend to submit on November 10, and be part of a growing movement. The Filipino people deserve better. No more lives should be sacrificed for the sake of dirty energy,” Hagedorn also said.