MORONG, Bataan- The Nuclear-Free Bataan Movement (NFBM) stands firm in its opposition to the rehabilitation of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) located here.
“The reliance on nuclear energy in general as this energy still remains the deadliest energy source ever invented by man,” the group said.
NFBM further added that the threat being at stake in using nuclear energy to man and environment has been further underscored by the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant which has been continuously leaking contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean.
Recent published reports stated that despite measures, Japan failed to chemically-treat the surrounding soil to serve as barrier to the water tainted with dangerous radioactive materials, according to nuclear watchdog, Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority.
“The nuclear nightmare which has gripped Japan since 2011, should serve as a living reminder to countries like the Philippines and other Asian neighbors who are toying with the idea of building and operating nuclear plants. Simply put, the risks are not worth it and it should never be,”NFBM secretary general Francisco Honra said in a news statement.
Honra added that they see no reason to revive the BNPP because of a vast source of renewable energy from geothermal, wind, solar and hydro resources that are yet not sufficiently tapped.
“The idea that nuclear energy is ‘too cheap to meter’ has been proven a fallacy since the first nuclear plant was built. In reality, nuclear power plants end up costlier to maintain, the sheer size of the project makes it vulnerable for corruption and shady deals. Most probably, like the first BNPP deal which was valued at USD600M but ballooned to USD 2.3Billion,” he reiterated.
The group also appeals to the Department of Energy and President Rodrigo Duterte’s good sense and sound judgment not to rehabilitate the BNPP. They believe that BNPP is the same plant, already proven to be riddled with defects, more than three decades older and still unacceptable.
Honra and his group believes BNPP’s location is “deadly”because the facility sits on Mt. Natib, a caldera-forming volcano like Mt. Pinatubo and Mt. Mariveles, which makes up the whole northern Bataan Peninsula and is very near to active fault lines such as Manila Trench-Luzon Trough.
“We have not forgotten. We are Bataenos and Filipinos who view with concern and alarm the proposal to rehabilitate the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant,” he added.
NFBM also re-affirms their stand that “now is not the time and there should never ever be any attempt to gamble with the high risk nuclear technology which has been proven fundamentally dangerous and unsafe. Instead, it’s time to permanently close the mothballed BNPP and cease from pursuing nuclear energy program.”
“We reiterate our call that a safe world is a nuclear-free world.” Honra concluded. -MHIKE R. CIGARAL