Isko not keen on reviving BNPP
PILAR, Bataan – Aksyon Demokratiko standard bearer Isko Moreno Domagoso on Wednesday said he is not keen on reviving the controversial Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) if he becomes president due to safety and environmental risks which could put people’s lives in danger.
“Well, I don’t think that the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant [BNPP] today is suitable for power generation. They have to permanently close it down. Wala na yan, hindi na yan safe para sa mga tao.
Hindi yan safe para sa mga tiga-Bataan,” Moreno told reporters before the start of the motorcade going to Balanga City where he paid a courtesy visit to Bishop Ruperto Cruz Santos of the Diocese of Balanga.
The BNPP was built in 1976 during the time of the late President Ferdinand E. Marcos, Sr. The nuclear facility was the country’s first and only nuclear power plant which cost the Filipino people a whopping $2.2 billion in foreign loans.
When Corazon Aquino became president in 1986, her administration decided not to operate it due to corruption and safety concerns, especially after the Chernobyl nuclear fallout in Russia that same year.
“Sa ngayon maraming other sources of energy – renewable, gas, or coal. Hangga’t mayroong teknolohiya at etong mga teknolohiyang eto na available and cost much less. I’m not saying it’s not harmful, but less ang masamang epekto sa kapaligiran yun muna ang ipaprayoridad ko especially if there is an opportunity to copy what the Netherlands did. They are resorting to renewable energy through open space via potable type pero ang ginawa nila agri-potable type source of energy. So, nakaimbento na sila ng way na patuloy pa rin silang magtatanim ng mga pagkain at kung saan tinatanim yung pagkain meron din source na pwede pagkunan ng clean, renewable energy,” Moreno explained.
Moreno said the country can use inspiration from The Netherlands as they mostly generate power from renewable sources such as wind, solar energy, and biomass. In 2018, electricity generated by wind power in the Netherlands amounted to 10.5 terawatt-hours. The electric production derived from photovoltaic power, on the other hand, produced 5.2 terawatt-hours in 2019.
