IN THIS age of global warming and catastrophic climate change in 2022, the Philippine government held a public bidding for electric power companies to bid on supplying the Philippine’s need for clean energy power plants to supply 1.966GW of electricity. From that bidding, the winners Aboitiz and Ayala (AC) are building solar plants in Zambales and they are constructing power transmission towers and power cables across the province to join the national grid.
Eventually, the solar power supply will benefit the Philippines and offset the CO2 emitted by coal-fired power plants and vehicles that is causing global warming. So far, the two Zambales-based solar plants are not yet operational. However, Ayala has sadly added many tons to the CO2 in the atmosphere by their logging and cutting of thousands of trees (photos) to make way for the power transmissions pylons and cables. They have not shared a replanting plan as yet for this column.
These cables radiate electromagnetic waves that are dangerous to humans, especially children. Aboitiz has not yet begun the cutting of trees and constructing the transmission pylons. To its credit, the company has a replanting plan and invited the Preda Foundation to work with them to monitor the replanting after the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) makes its assessment of trees that will be cut and the number of saplings needed for replanting. They have a 90 percent chance of survival. Philippine and international environmental protection groups are encouraged to monitor the replanting. It will begin in August during the rainy season. The Aboitiz solar power company has agreed with the Preda Foundation to reroute the cables a safer distance from the Preda children’s home in Subic. The cables emit electromagnetic radiation which is likely to cause leukemia in children. They are now passing further away from the home where 83 sexually abused children are recovering from abuse and trafficking.
This is a good cooperation and agreement with Aboitiz. It is a very ironic situation since the Preda Foundation’s recovery and healing home for abused children in Subic was built to save the children from the electromagnetic radiation from the unnecessary cables erected along the national highway close to the former Preda children’s home in Kalaklan, Olongapo City supposedly for the APEC meeting in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone on 24–25 November 1996. Preda mounted a strong protest against that and got international attention.
The cables in Kalaklan were declared over-sized and unnecessary since a 65KV power line passed over the cemetery from the Kale sub-power station. The campaign to protect the children caused world-wide condemnation of the authorities by national and international child protection groups and there was a Philippine congressional hearing. Now, the same danger has been avoided by the agreement with Aboitiz to prevent any danger of electromagnetic radiation to the 83 children in the Preda Foundation homes in Subic. (To be continued)/PN
