BILANG PILIPINO | Leading presidential candidates have mixed feelings on nuclear power

March 4, 2022 , 07:56 PM

By Clarist Zablan

(March 4, 2022) – The leading presidential candidates on Friday expressed mixed reactions on President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive on nuclear energy as an alternative power source, including the possibility of reviving the mothballed Bataan Nuclear Power Plant.

Survey front runner, ex- senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr welcomed Duterte’s directive, his spokesman Vic Rodriguez said, while claiming that the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) was just mothballed due to “prevailing sentiments” rather than a science backed consideration.

“It is the view of presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos that with 79% of our countrymen who have expressed approval or acceptability on the possible use or rehabilitation of the BNPP, decisions to be made from hereon must be based on practicality, follow the science and not make it an emotional or political issue,” Rodriguez said in a statement.

The $2.3-billion Bataan plant was the project of his father, the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos. It was shelved for four decades due to allegations of corruption and safety concerns, following the infamous Chernobyl nuclear accident in Ukraine in 1986.

Vice President Leonor Robredo affirmed her openness to discussion on tapping nuclear power, but she clarified that nuclear is the least of her priorities, opting to focus on renewable transition to meet the global goals to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

“Dapat ang pinag-uusapan ngayon ‘yung road map papunta sa pagiging carbon-neutral natin,” Robredo said in an interview with reporters. “’Yung preference sa indigenous sources of power, preference for renewables. ‘Yung pagsukat noong mga milestones pagdating sa energy mix, dapat very defined na ito kasi ngayon, wala pa.”

She also said there must be discussions on why the BNPP project was shelved, citing the numerous problems the project faced in the past.

Boxing icon and senator Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao was also skeptical about the prospects of reviving the Bataan project, and was more interested in pushing for other energy sources such as hydropower.

“Pwede naman tayo mag nuclear power… kung yan ang kinakailangan, pero may other source pa na pwede pagkunan ng energy, at pwede rin naman natin ipropose,” Pacquiao said.

While hydropower is generally favored over fossil fuel sources as it does not emit greenhouse gases, green groups have raised concerns on its environmental impacts as it can result in flooding in nearby areas, which could affect wildlife and ancestral lands in the vicinity.

Another Senator, Panfilo Lacson, was in favor of nuclear power as an alternative energy source in the Philippines, citing it as the cleanest and cheapest source of power. But he acknowledged the safety concerns surrounding such projects.

“Ang nuclear kasi cleanest, tapos cheapest,” Lacson told reporters on Thursday. “Ang makikinabang diyan consumers, mura kasi.”

For his part, Socialist labor leader Leodegario “Ka Leody” de Guzman opposed pushing for nuclear, warning that this will worsen the country’s problems with the environment and its fiscal status, in addition to the health risks it poses.

De Guzman favored renewable sources such as wind and solar as alternatives. Although wind and solar farms typically have lower capacity factors than other energy sources, he noted that Vietnam has seen some success in pushing for these projects in recent years.

“Naniniwala ako na kailangan pa ng mahabang panahon upang maabot ang teknikal na kaalaman at materyal na kapasidad para gawing ligtas ang ganitong tipo ng paglikha ng kuryente, sa kabila ng aking kumpyansa sa ating mga siyentista,” he said in a statement.

Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, former Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales, caridologist Jose Montemayor and businessman Faisal Mangondato have not issued a statement on the matter as of writing.

But Domagoso has rejected the possibility of pushing for nuclear power, saying that he would rather push for safer, renewable alternatives.

(MM | With reports from Mon Gualvez and Marie Ann Los Banos, News5)

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