The Department of Science and Technology (Dost) and Its attached agency Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (Pnri) want to reinstate the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (Bnpp) in Light of the Looming Depletion of Gas from the Malampaya Gas Field in Palawan.

PNRI director Carlo Arcilla told reporters that all well-lit places in the world” had nuclear power plants.

“There is more radiation when eating one banana [because of its potassium] than standing in front of the BNPP,” Arcilla was quoted as saying in a Manila Standard report.

They saw the need to revive the BNPP because of the nearing gas depletion of Malampaya gas field, which would only last for another five years, he said.

“The cost of electricity would significantly go down if we could only rely on nuclear power,” Arcilla added.

He also noted that the findings of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology confirming there is no fault beneath the BNPP is vital to the talks of reviving the Philippines’ lone nuclear plant.

In the report, Arcilla noted that the BNPP is still needed given its projection of producing 700 MW “at most.” Together with the use of coal-powered energy and wind energy when it comes to generating energy, Arcilla said the country will need all three energy sources simultaneously to address the power shortfall of over 10,000 MW “in the near future.”

“I acknowledge the concerns of some environmental advocates as to where to dump the nuclear waste,” Arcilla said in the report.

“But that would not a be a big problem. We are an archipelagic country. We have so many islands such as Kalayaan and Pagasa, and the technology to dump nuclear waste through deep geologic borehole disposal. We have very good scientists in our country.”

Source: powerphilippines.com

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CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga — The year 2018 saw the economy of Central Luzon in a sustainable growth level primarily pushed by major developments in the region.

Amid the mild domestic and external challenges that the Philippines experienced in the past months, Central Luzon remained one of the core regions contributing significantly to the overall growth of the country as fueled by the impressive performances of the region’s emerging cities and special economic zones.

The biggest contributors to the region’s steady growth this year are the three Freeport zones, namely the Clark Freeport Zone, Subic Freeport Zone and the Bataan Freeport Zone.

Investments and Job Opportunities

The Clark Freeport Zone is becoming the next economic haven of Luzon with unprecedented gains in investments, revenues, employment and other significant achievements.

Noel F. Manankil, president and CEO of the Clark Development Corporation (CDC), said the impressive accomplishments in the Freeport can be attributed to the sound business climate that attracted more investors.

CDC’s latest number of locator-firms totaled 949, most of them in the information communication technology (ICT), service and developers’ industries. This resulted in the creation of jobs for 108,000 workers.

“With its extensive involvement in the government’s Build, Build, Build, program, Clark will be able to provide more jobs and opportunities for the Filipinos,” Manankil said.

The Subic Bay Freeport, on the other hand, has a total of 1,596 business locators that employ a total workforce of 133,940.

“There is a significant harvest of business commitments and opportunities for Subic, and it only goes to show that this freeport remains to be one of the strongest economic drivers in the country today,” SBMA chairman and administrator Wilma T. Eisma said.

For the first half of the year, the SBMA has approved 45 new investment projects worth a total of PHP2.85 billion, bringing the cumulative investment commitments to PHP499.6 billion.

Eisma said the SBMA hopes to create more business opportunities as it arranges cooperation programs with neighboring communities to host additional investment projects.

Meanwhile, the number of approved and registered locators at the Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan (AFAB) reached 163 as of September this year.

“The continuous influx of new and interested locators in the FAB means an increased number of job opportunities for the community,” AFAB chairman and administrator Emmanuel D. Pineda said.

So far, the number of workforce in the Freeport totaled 40,567 wherein 35,116 are from Bataan and 5,451 from other regions even as far as Visayas and Mindanao.

Data showed that AFAB likewise managed to contribute bigger shares to the government from PHP98 million in 2017 to PHP141 million this year.

“We all decided to move forward together as we aim to reach new frontiers and trail blaze an amazing future for the next generations. Two years later, we have succeeded in sustaining this growth and now we continue to expand towards new possibilities,” Pineda said.

Agriculture

The agriculture sector of Central Luzon experienced a slowdown this year following the effect of typhoons in the past months.

The Department of Agriculture (DA)-Central Luzon reported that damage to agriculture in the region due to typhoons Henry, Inday and Josie was placed at PHP770 million.

Likewise, some 110,698 hectares of farmlands in the region were affected by the onslaught of Typhoon Ompong, causing destruction to crops amounting to some PHP2.05 billion.

As a result, Central Luzon is one of the four typhoon-affected regions placed under the state of calamity to mitigate the economic impact of the typhoon to the affected residents.

The member-agencies of the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council in Central Luzon have also provided various assistance to the typhoon-affected families.

Despite the slowdown in the agriculture sector, Central Luzon plays a big role to the country’s economy due to diversification developments in the region.

Tourism

A spike in tourist volume in Central Luzon this year was noted due to improved infrastructures such as the integration of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway that paved the way for an easier and accessible travel to and from the provinces in the region.

The passenger traffic at the Clark International Airport is expected to hit the 2.5 million mark in the number of passengers before the year ends.

“The Clark International Airport is now one of the country’s busiest airports and this 2.5-million passenger mark is another record-breaking milestone for Clark,” Jaime Melo, president and chief executive officer of the Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) said in a statement.

At present, the Clark International Airport sustains 390 domestic and 184 international flights weekly.

“We are also targeting at least 11 domestic and 24 international destinations for next year,” Melo said.

The emergence of Subic as a hub for cruise ships was also cited.

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) is seeking to integrate tourist destinations in the neighboring provinces of Pampanga, Tarlac, Bataan and Zambales to boost cruise tourism program of the Subic Bay Freeport and create inclusive growth in the region.

“Our strategy is for Subic to become the anchor cruise ship destination, but it’s actually not only for Subic but for the inclusive growth of all of us as well,” Eisma earlier said.

So far, the number of Subic’s cruise ship arrivals this year was placed at 20, each bringing in some 2,000 to 5,000 tourists at every port call.

The construction of the Subic-Clark Railway, the North-South Railway spanning Laguna-Manila-Clark, and the expansion of the Clark International Airport will also serve as come-on for businessmen and tourists.

Economic outlook for 2019

With the high-impact projects in the region under the Duterte administration’s “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program, particularly in Clark Freeport Zone, another good year is expected to come in for the economy in Central Luzon.

Jess Nicdao, president of the Pampanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. said the major infrastructure projects are the key to sustaining the economic growth of the region.

He lauded the Duterte administration for making Clark a part of the country’s economic strategy which is expected to experience an influx of new businesses and investments.

The country’s hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games where some of the games will be held in Clark next year, is likewise seen to give a multiplier effect that could help sustain the vibrant economy of Central Luzon.

Source: pna.gov.ph

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SUBIC BAY FREEPORT — This bustling industrial-commercial zone still plays an important role in educating residents on environmental protection and climate-change mitigation by providing real-life outdoor classrooms for ecosystem-based training.

Recently, some 60 members of the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) from communities around the Subic Bay Freeport participated in a disaster-risk management training that focused on the importance of ecosystem and biodiversity in mitigating climate change.

SK leaders listen to a lecture on the importance of mangroves and seagrasses to climate change mitigation.

Dubbed as EcoDRRM, or Ecosystem-Based Disaster Risk Reduction and Management, the US Embassy-sponsored project sought to empower participants through outdoor workshops on the pivotal contributions of mangrove, forests and seagrasses to climate change mitigation.

The three-day training conducted under the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI), brought youth leaders from Olongapo City, Castillejos, Zambales and Morong, Bataan to various ecosystems in the Subic Bay Freeport that served as backdrop for the program.

The activity was spearheaded by a team of United States-Philippines exchange alumni who won the Small Grant Competition and was given funding to support the conduct of the EcoDRRM project.

Rhea Jane Mallari, an environment officer at the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Ecology Center and team leader of the project, said the participants heard lectures on disaster risk management, community risk mapping, climate change adaptation, and other related topics on the first day.

The second day then took the participants to a mangrove area at Sitio Sabang in Morong, Bataan, where they planted mangrove saplings and learned about how the mangrove and seagrass eco-systems serve as bio-shield for natural disasters.

At Day 3, the youth participants trekked the Pamulaklakin forest where they learned about the importance of forests in disaster prevention and received demonstrations on jungle survival, preparing healthy foods during evacuation, and relieving stress during disaster.

Mallari and fellow US-PH exchange alumnus Patrick Escusa said the participants all hailed the project as “a great learning experience that gave them helpful insights on disaster-risk mitigation.”

“We are very happy that the project succeeded in capacitating the youth in DRRM preparedness and prevention through ecosystem management, and imparted the culture of proactive response rather than reactive response to disasters,” Escusa said.

“We will continue the program by assisting and ensuring that the SK officials will apply what they learned from the training-workshop by conducting their own city or municipal-wide EcoDRRM projects,” Escusa added.

The EcoDRRM project was the latest in a long line of activities here that made use of Subic’s biodiversity to train workers and facilitators in environmental protection and resource conservation.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said Subic Freeport’s vast forest, marine, and freshwater resources provide a diverse ecosystem that makes for realistic learning.

“This is why many researchers and academics chose Subic for the conduct of their studies,” Eisma noted. “And as the country’s first eco-urban center, Subic is ideal for these activities and the SBMA is ever supportive of these projects.”

Source: subicnewslink.blogspot.com

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THE Southeast Asian Games that the Philippines is hosting next year will be spread across different areas in line with its vision “to strengthen the cities and communities where the events will take place.”

In a Facebook posting last week, organizers of the SEA Games 2019 shared the venues where the sporting events will be held.

The venues are divided into four clusters, as per the posting, namely, Clark, Pampanga, Metro Manila; Subic, Zambales; and the Batangas, La Union and Tagaytay cluster.

In the Clark cluster are aquatics, underwater hockey, athletics, archery, rugby 7’S, arnis, baseball, softball, floorball, indoor hockey, net ball, golf, judo, jujitsu, kurash, smabo, wrestling, lawn balls, petanque, shooting and wakeboarding.

Identified areas in Clark include the Parade Grounds, The Villages, Royce Hotel, Luisita Golf, ASEAN Convention Center, Clark Global City and Clark Wakepark.

Part of the Metro Manila cluster, meanwhile, are badminton, basketball (3-on-3), basketball full court, taekwondo. Bowling, boxing, fencing, kickboxing, wushu, figure skating, ice hockey, football, gymnastics, rowing, soft tennis, tennis, squash, volleyball, Esports and billiards.

Among the venues are Philippine Sports Commission Philippines Arena, SM Mall of Asia Activity Arena, MOA Arena. Ninoy Aquino Stadium, World Trade Center, La Mesa Ecopark, Manila Polo Club and Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Venues for Esports and billiards are still to be determined.

In Subic, to be played are beach volleyball, beach handball, chess, muay, vovinam, pancak silat, table tennis, weightlifting, karatedo, sepak takraw, obstacle sports, sailing, windsurfing, traditional boat race, triathlon and duathlon.

Areas of competition include Subic Tennis Court, Subic Bay Exhibition & Convention Center, Subic Gymnasium and Subic Bay Yacht Club.

Polo will be played in Calatagan, Batangas. Surfing is in La Union while cycling and skateboarding are to be held in Tagaytay.

The 2019 SEA Games Philippines will take place from Nov. 30 to Dec. 11.

Fifty-six sports disciplines were approved by the organizers, who recently started the one-year countdown for the event in ceremonies held in Clark.

Source: bworldonline.com

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The bill mandating parents to plant two trees for every child born to them is inching closer to becoming a law.

House Bill No. 8727 was approved on second reading during Wednesday’s plenary session. It will be calendared for third reading approval when House resumes session next year.

Authored by Reps. Noel Villanueva (NPC, Tarlac) and Carmen Zamora (PDP-Laban, Compostela Valley), HB 8727 provides that the planting of trees will be a mandatory requirement that parents must comply in order to secure the release of the birth certificate of a child born to them.

Villanueva, chairman of the House special committee on reforestation, said the bill is aimed at ensuring the protection and preservation of the environment and advance the right of the people to a balanced and health ecology.

He said seedlings must be planted within the premises of the parents’ own home or in an area to be designated by the barangay council where the family resides.

Identified sites for planting must be approved by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

HB 8727 provides that planted species should be appropriate to the location, climate and topography of the area.

The bill directs the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office of the DENR and the Department of Agriculture to maintain a seedling bank that will serve as the ready source for seedlings to be provided to couples.

According to Villanueva compliance to the provisions of the measure will be ensured by the city or municipal local civil registry where the birth of the child will be registered.

The “punong barangay” of the community where the family lives will issue a certificate attesting compliance which, in turn, will be presented to the registrar.

news.mb.com.ph

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