NUCLEAR POWER | Green group slams Duterte’s move to encourage nuclear energy as power source

March 3, 2022 , 07:46 PM

By Clarist Zablan

(March 3, 2022) – An international environmental group on Thursday slammed President Rodrigo Duterte’s program encouraging nuclear energy as an alternative power source, raising concerns over its high costs and health risks.

Greenpeace campaigner Khevin Yu said Duterte’s Executive Order (EO) 164, adopting a national position for the nuclear energy program, is setting up the country for a disaster similar to the infamous Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear accidents in Ukraine and Japan, respectively.

“Greenpeace is demanding the Duterte administration to revoke EO 164,” Yu said in a statement. “We believe it is a treacherous move spurred by misguided interests that are not aligned with the interests of the Filipino people.”

The executive order was signed on February 28 but was only made public on Thursday, sought to address the anticipated decline in coal-fired power, considered the dirtiest energy source, as there’s a global push to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Duterte also directed the Nuclear Energy Program-Inter-Agency Committee (NEP-IAC) to make recommendations on the viability of reviving the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant, an anomalous project under the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos that was shelved due to corruption controversies and safety concerns.

Yu warned of nuclear energy’s high cost of construction and operations, including radioactive fuel storage and management of a nuclear incident that can reach billions of dollars, which would put the country in even deeper debt. Uranium prices also tend to be volatile as it is almost always sourced in conflict areas, he said.

“The signing of this EO and (Energy Secretary Alfonso) Cusi’s continued peddling of the interests of the nuclear industry is a blatant disregard of the people’s call for a concrete, sustainable, and safe solution to the energy crisis through renewable energy,” Yu said.

Responding to Duterte’s order, Energy Undersecretary Gerardo Erguiza Jr said the enegy agency will carefully study the nuclear energy program, but the country won’t see nuclear power until 2027 or 2030, well after the Duterte administration.

He said a regulatory policy is needed first before the country can push for nuclear power.

“This is a policy for the future,” Erguiza said in a virtual briefing. “It is not just about putting up power plants but we are preparing something that will definitely be needed in the future. So it’s up to the future generation of leaders and people to decide if we put up the power plant.”

Coal still dominates the Philippines’ power mix, accounting for nearly 55% of the nation’s energy supply. It is followed by natural gas at 21.1% and geothermal by 10.1%. Renewables such as solar and wind only make up 3.1% of the power mix.

(MM)

Privacy Statement

Our Privacy Commitment

TV5 Network Inc. values and respects your privacy. We are committed to safeguarding your personal data in compliance with Republic Act No. 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012 and its implementing rules and regulations.

We have developed a Privacy Policy that adopts and observes appropriate standards for personal data protection. While our Privacy Policy sets out the general principles governing the collection, use, and disclosure of our users’ personal information, our Privacy Commitment seeks to inform you more about TV5’s privacy practices.

Why do we collect your personal information (as applicable)?

We may collect and maintain basic information about you as site user of TV5 sites for the following purposes:

To deliver news and updates on current events, sports, esports and entertainment;
To share livestreams of news and sports events;
To understand our viewers’ needs and preferences;
To meet legal and regulatory requirements; and
To perform other processes or disclosures that are required to comply with pertinent laws, rules, or regulations.

Where do we get your personal information?

There are several ways we collect your personal information.

Information that you personally provided.

Most of the personal information we have are those that you have provided us when you:
- Register to our programs or services;
- Inquired, filed a complaint or requested for our services;
- Took part in our research and surveys; and/or
- Became our Partner, Vendor, Contractor or Supplier.

Information we collect during your engagement with us

We also collect information as you use our products and services, like:
- Viewing our websites;
- Activities that are being tracked by our website cookies;
- Calling our hotline;
- Using our apps, websites, and self-service channels and portals; and/or
- Joining our promos, prize raffles, or rewards and loyalty programs.

Information we collect from other sources

Other means of collection of information may be through:
- Our market research initiatives;
- When you visit and use our websites and mobile application; and
- Subsidiaries, affiliates, and third-party business partners to whom you have given consent to share your information to us.

When do we disclose personal information?

There may be instances when we are required to share the information you provided us. In such cases, we ensure that your personal information will be disclosed on a confidential manner, through secure channels and in compliance with the Data Privacy Act and other privacy laws.

We will never share, rent, or sell your personal information to third parties outside of TV5 except in special cases where you have given consent, and in cases described in our privacy policy.

In some instances, we may be required to disclose your personal information to our agents, subsidiaries, affiliates, business partners and other third-party agencies and service providers as part of our regular business operations and for the provision of our programs and services. This means we might share your information with our service providers, contractors, and professional advisers who help us provide our services.

How we protect your personal information

The integrity, confidentiality, and security of your information is important to us. We have implemented technical, organizational, and physical security measures that are designed to protect your information from unauthorized or fraudulent access, alteration, disclosure, misuse, and other unlawful activities.

We also put in effect the following safeguards:

We keep and protect your information using a secured server behind a firewall, encryption and security controls;
We keep your information only for as long as it is necessary for us to (a) provide the products and services that you avail from us, (b) for our legitimate business purposes, (c) to comply with pertinent laws, and (d) for special cases that will require the exercise or defense of legal claims;
We limit the access to your information only to qualified and authorized personnel who are trained to handle your information with strict confidentiality;
We undergo regular audits and rigorous testing of our infrastructure’s security protocols to ensure your data is always protected;
We promptly notify you and the National Privacy Commission when sensitive personal information that may, under the circumstances, be used to enable identity fraud are reasonably believed to have been acquired by an unauthorized person; and
We let you update your information securely to keep our records accurate.

TV5 will not collect, use, or disclose your personal information for any purpose other than the purpose that you may have given your consent for.

What are your choices?

We make sure that we have your consent to continue to collect, use, and disclose your personal information for the purposes that we have identified. We want you to know that you may object or withdraw your consent and/or edit your consent preferences at any time.

If you wish to have access to the personal information in our custody or if you think that the personal information you provided is incomplete, or otherwise inaccurate, you may get in touch with our Data Protection Officer through the contact details provided below. In some instances, we may request for supporting documents or proof before we effect requested changes.

Data Protection Officer
TV5 Network Inc.
Reliance corner Sheridan Streets
Mandaluyong City
tv5dataprivacy@tv5.com.ph

What happens when there are changes in our Policy?

From time to time, we may update our privacy policy and practices to comply with changes in applicable laws and regulatory requirements, adapt to new technologies and protocols, and align with the best practices of the industry.

You will be provided notices if the changes are significant and, if we are required by law, we will obtain your updated consent.