Clamor to investigate PEDC operation heightens
Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog said he has formed a multi-partite team that will investigate the complaints of the residents of Brgy. Ingore in La Paz district on the foul odor coming from the coal-fired power plant of Panay Energy Development Corp.
Mabilog ordered the investigation as the City Council committee on public services, environmental protection and ecology chaired by Councilor David Jamora also conducted a hearing on the incident yesterday.
At the hearing, Henry Alcalde, PEDC general manager, said they did not anticipate the bad odor when they conducted the test operations last week but he said the PEDC would welcome an investigation from other parties.
A number of school children were hospitalized after inhaling the foul smell and many of them were wearing masks going to school.
Also, yesterday a six-month-old baby boy of the Barrientos family died after he suffered from breathing difficulty believed to have been aggravated by the bad odor coming from the coal-fired power plant.
The baby died at the West Visayas State University Medical Center where he was confined for several days.
Multipartite Team
Mabilog said the multipartite team is composed of the City Environment and Natural Resources Office, City Planning and Development Office, City Health Office and the media.
He said he wants the PEDC to be transparent and not to jeopardize the health of the people living around the plant.
The 164-megawatt coal-fired power plant is scheduled to operate in November.
Mabilog said he will not hesitate to issue a cease and desist order that may lead to the non-issuance of business permit should the plant continue to emit bad odor.
For his part, Alcalde said the foul odor may have come from the solvent paint used in the insulation of the boilers.
He also asked for understanding and assured the residents that corrective measures are being initiated for the odor to disappear.
Earlier, the Freedom from Debt Coalition-Iloilo filed a notice to sue the coal-fired power plant before the Office of the Mayor, Office of the Vice Mayor, City Council and Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau, among others.
The group said the City Government and DENR-EMB should act on reports of the foul smell as it constitutes violation of the Clean Air Act and the Local Government Code.*NLG
