Post by seacid on Nov 26, 2007 12:11:48 GMT 8
Tempest in Tanon
By Ma. Ceres P. Doyo
Inquirer
MANILA, Philippines -- "The State shall protect and advance the right
of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the
rhythm and harmony of nature." -- Article II, Sec. 16 of the
Philippine Constitution.
I imagine the lord of the sea wading to shore, wearing raiment of
corals and sea grass and -- flotsam surrendered by the sea.
Thundering, roaring like the wind in a lost empty city, he seeks the
despoilers of his ocean home and the home of gentle sea creatures that
inhabit the earth and provide food for its inhabitants. Where are
they? he roars. Who are they, they who laid waste the ocean garden?
This scenario plays like a movie in my mind, it surges in my
consciousness like the thoughts and images I had long ago while
beholding, somewhere, the sea in its threatening beauty. And I imagine
now the threatened Tanon Strait in the Visayan Sea as it waits to be
visited by turbulence in the form of exploratory drilling for gas.
The sea is a-boil. A slow, symphonic movement takes a sudden turn and
climaxes with a roll of drums and a clash of cymbals. The sea quakes
to a crescendo, then hurls itself against the wind. Here before you is
a concerto at its most tempestuous peak. Water breaking into a million
crystalline pieces -- it is pure music and fury. Salt melts in your
eyes. Suddenly you are no longer afraid.
A battle royale is set to unfold if Japan Petroleum Exploration Co.
(Japex) starts exploring for oil on Tanon Strait, without having
hearkened to protesting communities, scientists and environmental
advocates who are asking that exploration be put on hold while the sea
itself is to be explored to find out how much of it will live and how
much will die.
Former Environment Secretary Angel Alcala, director of Silliman
University's center for marine and environment research in Dumaguete
City, and his team have come out with a paper explaining what the
drilling will mean. They also proposed a technical survey of the
strait as a safeguard against potential adverse effects of the
exploration. (Drilling was supposed to start last week.)
What and where is Tanon Strait? It is part of the Visayan Sea, the
body of water that separates the island provinces of Cebu and Negros,
includes the Cebu-Bohol Strait, separates the provinces of Cebu and
Bohol, and includes the waters of Antique, Leyte, Palawan, Mindoro
Occidental, Albay and Camarines Sur. The Visayan Sea is one of the
richest marine habitats in the world.
Tanon Strait is a protected area, having been declared such under
Presidential Proclamation 1234 issued by President Joseph Estrada.
The drilling is supposed to be done off Aloguinsan and Pinamungajan in
Cebu, not far from Dumaguete City, the university town in Negros
Oriental. According to Alcala, several community-based marine
protected areas (MPAs) have been established in both the Cebu and
Negros side of the strait and the local government units have been
investing funds in the management of these MPAs.
Alcala adds that oil exploration (both the seismic exploration and
drilling itself) has been proven in other countries to be detrimental
to marine life. The Philippines has yet to come up with findings to
back this up. Does this mean we don't wanna know?
Here is the proposition: "To gather data on marine mammals and fish
catch; do oceanographic studies (total suspended solids, oil and
grease, current patterns) before the actual drilling is conducted, so
that there will be proof that can stand in any court of law later on
should there be adverse impacts on the environment because of the
drilling. An economic valuation study will also be conducted to prove
that NOT drilling for oil and gas is beneficial to the communities in
the area and to the country in the long run."
And, by the way, the strait is one of the few places in the world
inhabited by special species of marine mammals, among them, the
elusive pygmy sperm whales. More importantly, the strait is fishing
ground for communities in Cebu and Negros.
It is worth noting that 11 congressmen and -- women have filed a
resolution directing the House committee on natural resources to
investigate the impact of offshore mining in the Visayan Sea. This
resolution was triggered by gas companies (Japex of Japan and The
Forum Exploration Inc. of Canada) entering into a seven-year contract
with the Philippine government for oil and gas exploration, and
another 25 years for the extraction and controlling process.
The province of Cebu did not take this sitting down. The Sangguniang
Panlalawigan approved last July a resolution exhorting Congress to
proclaim the Visayan Sea a Marine Reservation and Heritage Site, that
sea "being host to the world's richest marine biodiversity area."
The Sulu Sea had been identified as a disposal site for drillings.
Alcala howls: "But the Sulu Sea is a prime fishing area and has high
biodiversity!"
He adds that the Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) was not
sufficient and based on old data and "cannot be used as baselines for
future monitoring of drilling effects and therefore not acceptable."
How did Japex gather the data? How are the data and their credibility
to be verified? Alcala and his team have discovered holes in the IEE
and concluded: "We found the IEE document wanting in the critical
survey data and information needed for determining the environmental
and socio-economic impacts of the proposed drilling operation of
Japex."
After the tumult dies down and the threat is gone, we hope to hear in
the Tanon Strait only the music of the cathedral waves eternally
folding and unfolding.
* * *
Send feedback to cerespd@info.com.ph.
By Ma. Ceres P. Doyo
Inquirer
MANILA, Philippines -- "The State shall protect and advance the right
of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the
rhythm and harmony of nature." -- Article II, Sec. 16 of the
Philippine Constitution.
I imagine the lord of the sea wading to shore, wearing raiment of
corals and sea grass and -- flotsam surrendered by the sea.
Thundering, roaring like the wind in a lost empty city, he seeks the
despoilers of his ocean home and the home of gentle sea creatures that
inhabit the earth and provide food for its inhabitants. Where are
they? he roars. Who are they, they who laid waste the ocean garden?
This scenario plays like a movie in my mind, it surges in my
consciousness like the thoughts and images I had long ago while
beholding, somewhere, the sea in its threatening beauty. And I imagine
now the threatened Tanon Strait in the Visayan Sea as it waits to be
visited by turbulence in the form of exploratory drilling for gas.
The sea is a-boil. A slow, symphonic movement takes a sudden turn and
climaxes with a roll of drums and a clash of cymbals. The sea quakes
to a crescendo, then hurls itself against the wind. Here before you is
a concerto at its most tempestuous peak. Water breaking into a million
crystalline pieces -- it is pure music and fury. Salt melts in your
eyes. Suddenly you are no longer afraid.
A battle royale is set to unfold if Japan Petroleum Exploration Co.
(Japex) starts exploring for oil on Tanon Strait, without having
hearkened to protesting communities, scientists and environmental
advocates who are asking that exploration be put on hold while the sea
itself is to be explored to find out how much of it will live and how
much will die.
Former Environment Secretary Angel Alcala, director of Silliman
University's center for marine and environment research in Dumaguete
City, and his team have come out with a paper explaining what the
drilling will mean. They also proposed a technical survey of the
strait as a safeguard against potential adverse effects of the
exploration. (Drilling was supposed to start last week.)
What and where is Tanon Strait? It is part of the Visayan Sea, the
body of water that separates the island provinces of Cebu and Negros,
includes the Cebu-Bohol Strait, separates the provinces of Cebu and
Bohol, and includes the waters of Antique, Leyte, Palawan, Mindoro
Occidental, Albay and Camarines Sur. The Visayan Sea is one of the
richest marine habitats in the world.
Tanon Strait is a protected area, having been declared such under
Presidential Proclamation 1234 issued by President Joseph Estrada.
The drilling is supposed to be done off Aloguinsan and Pinamungajan in
Cebu, not far from Dumaguete City, the university town in Negros
Oriental. According to Alcala, several community-based marine
protected areas (MPAs) have been established in both the Cebu and
Negros side of the strait and the local government units have been
investing funds in the management of these MPAs.
Alcala adds that oil exploration (both the seismic exploration and
drilling itself) has been proven in other countries to be detrimental
to marine life. The Philippines has yet to come up with findings to
back this up. Does this mean we don't wanna know?
Here is the proposition: "To gather data on marine mammals and fish
catch; do oceanographic studies (total suspended solids, oil and
grease, current patterns) before the actual drilling is conducted, so
that there will be proof that can stand in any court of law later on
should there be adverse impacts on the environment because of the
drilling. An economic valuation study will also be conducted to prove
that NOT drilling for oil and gas is beneficial to the communities in
the area and to the country in the long run."
And, by the way, the strait is one of the few places in the world
inhabited by special species of marine mammals, among them, the
elusive pygmy sperm whales. More importantly, the strait is fishing
ground for communities in Cebu and Negros.
It is worth noting that 11 congressmen and -- women have filed a
resolution directing the House committee on natural resources to
investigate the impact of offshore mining in the Visayan Sea. This
resolution was triggered by gas companies (Japex of Japan and The
Forum Exploration Inc. of Canada) entering into a seven-year contract
with the Philippine government for oil and gas exploration, and
another 25 years for the extraction and controlling process.
The province of Cebu did not take this sitting down. The Sangguniang
Panlalawigan approved last July a resolution exhorting Congress to
proclaim the Visayan Sea a Marine Reservation and Heritage Site, that
sea "being host to the world's richest marine biodiversity area."
The Sulu Sea had been identified as a disposal site for drillings.
Alcala howls: "But the Sulu Sea is a prime fishing area and has high
biodiversity!"
He adds that the Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) was not
sufficient and based on old data and "cannot be used as baselines for
future monitoring of drilling effects and therefore not acceptable."
How did Japex gather the data? How are the data and their credibility
to be verified? Alcala and his team have discovered holes in the IEE
and concluded: "We found the IEE document wanting in the critical
survey data and information needed for determining the environmental
and socio-economic impacts of the proposed drilling operation of
Japex."
After the tumult dies down and the threat is gone, we hope to hear in
the Tanon Strait only the music of the cathedral waves eternally
folding and unfolding.
* * *
Send feedback to cerespd@info.com.ph.