INDICATIONS are clear that the number of provinces in the country which are committed to have a coal-free environment is rising.
This came after a proposed provincial resolution declaring Negros Occidental as coal-free is being pushed in an effort to disallow the exploration, establishment and operation of any coal-fired power plant in the entire province.
The resolution stemmed from the initiative of Negros Occidental Governor Alfredo G. Marañon Jr. who recently urged the Sangguniang Panlalawigan for its passage.
The resolution specifically seeks to ensure that the provincial government is bent on maintaining and protecting its pristine environment condition while it actively pursues efforts to establish energy development projects which can provide a sustainable, accessible, and reliable power supply for the province of Negros Occidental.
It was learned that the move of the provincial government stemmed from a report saying that a large corporation is planning to establish a coal-fired power plant in the province of Negros Occidental.
This proves, once again, that the continuing efforts against dirty and harmful energy are very much alive and kicking.
Energy sources using coal of any type will have harmful effects to the environment, dreaded impact on climate change, and menace to the health of the people.
Once the resolution is approved, Negros Occidental will be added to the list of provinces that have already committed to have a coal-free environment, which include the provinces of Ilocos Norte, Guimaras, Sorsogon, and its neighbor Negros Oriental.
The latest addition to the list is Masbate following the approval of its Provincial Resolution No. 096-18, officially declaring the province as coal-free.
Even environment advocate group Greenpeace Philippines said that the fight for the future of the planet and the climate is a fight that unites us all.
Integral to this struggle is to break free from fossil fuels and to demand a swift and just transition to renewable energy sources.
Recently, disaster survivors, frontline communities, indigenous peoples, farmers, youth, women, and civil society groups in the different provinces of the country have carried out various protest activities to join the global wave of actions to break free from fossil fuels.
“We have seen that when people are given the choice between dirty and polluting energy sources such as coal, and clean energy sources like solar and wind, people will choose that which they think will benefit them the most – renewable energy,” Greenpeace said.
It was learned that even the World Wide Fund for Nature has earlier said that most of the companies responsible for the lion’s share of industrial greenhouse gas emissions have apparently chosen not to curb their emissions despite having the knowledge and capability to do so.
“We are calling on the Philippine government and financial institutions to act immediately and invest more in sustainable energy powered by wind, water, and the sun. We should phase out investments in coal, oil, and gas and enable a just transition by scaling up renewable energy,” said Raphael Dorilag, energy project officer of World Wide Fund for Nature. (jaypeeyap@ymail.com/PN)
