OPPONENTS of the plan to revive the mothballed Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) on Thursday chided lawmakers for ignoring the risks involved in operating the plant.

Giovanni Tapang, spokesman for the No to BNPP Revival! said lawmakers seem to ignore the voluminous studies that document the danger of operating the plant.

Members of the House of Representatives are now preparing to discuss House Bill (HB) 6300, the consolidated version of the bill sponsored by Lakas Rep. Mikey Arroyo of Pampanga, chairman of the House energy committee. HB 6300 is principally authored by Nationalist People’s Coalition Rep. Mark Cojuangco of Pangasinan.

Tapang described the proadministration lawmakers’ move in the House as “another runaway train in Congress.”

“Congress is now set to commit another mistake as it prepares to discuss House Bill 6300. The people will not forgive the representatives who will pass this folly of a bill,” Tapang said.

HB 6300 mandates the immediate rehabilitation, commissioning and commercial operation of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant. It also provides for the conduct of a so-called validation study costing an additional P100 million while the rest of the bill mandates the immediate operation of the nuclear plant.

The network chided this provision in the bill.                             

Tapang asked why Congress is funding a study which findings are evident even before it starts. He said there are already three major studies on the BNPP done in the past, including the Senate findings in 1986.

“The government should be clear with its priorities. If they are serious in conducting studies to develop the energy sector, they should put the funds on researches in unleashing the renewable-energy potential of the country, like geothermal power in which the country has a high potential ranking second in the world and first on per capita basis. At least such a study would have groundbreaking results for the future of cheaper and safer energy sources in the country,” Tapang added.

“The move of the congressmen to pass the amended bill instead of totally junking it is reflective of the energy policies of the Arroyo administration. They only want the money involved and have no true intentions of developing the energy sector. The people have a clear stand on the issue; let this serve as a warning to the politicians in Congress who allow themselves to be under the influence of prominent figures pushing for this bill that the people will not forget when the ballot starts to speak in 2010,” said Tapang.

No to BNPP Revival! asserts that the BNPP is not essential in addressing the looming energy crisis in 2012. “The country has vast indigenous energy resources that we can tap which are more safe and reliable than nuclear power and neither would the operation of the BNPP assure cheap electricity for the people and energy independence for the country.”

The network also said BNPP is defective, almost obsolete and is not safe to operate. There are numerous and significant arguments being raised with regards to geologic hazards, infrastructure integrity, and nuclear waste storage and disposal. Its operation will pose great risks to the health and lives of the people and the
environment.

Meanwhile, the environmental group Greenpeace condemned Cojuangco’s alleged “underhanded attempt to railroad the passage of the HB 6300 at the Lower House”

Greenpeace Campaigner Francis dela Cruz said Cojuangco demonstrated that his intentions with HB 6300 cannot be trusted, reacting to his sponsorship speech on Wednesday.

“First he wants to revive a defective nuclear plant, ignoring all the risks and dangers that have been identified by experts. Every single study conducted on the BNPP has concluded that this nuclear facility is unsafe to operate,” he said.

Greenpeace revealed that even if rehabilitated, the BNPP will not pass the current international safety standards required of nuclear facilities.

“Then he wants to pursue this dangerous track using all means available—trying to railroad a bill that is full of errors. Without the benefit of a study to support it, or proper consultations, HB 6300 is as defective as the BNPP.

The fact that it is now presented to the House in plenary session under such shady circumstances just goes to show how much arm twisting Cojuangco is willing to do merely pass his misguided bill.”

“Clearly, Cojuangco’s rabid pursuit of nuclear power should be questioned. Nuclear power is dangerous, expensive and unnecessary. In pursuing this bill, Cojuangco is on a mission to condemn future generations of Filipinos to almost certain disaster. Congress should reject further efforts to move HB 6300 forward. There is no logical reason why our lawmakers should be made to waste their time continuing to consider this oppressive and harmful energy source. Congress should instead ensure that the renewable-energy law, which they passed last year gets the full support it deserves in order to move the country toward a safe and sustainable energy future.”