An expensive tourist attraction
ENVIRONMENT group Greenpeace said it supports the plan of the Department of Tourism to turn the unused Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in Bagac, Bataan into a tourist attraction.
The BNPP, a project of President Ferdinand Marcos, began construction in 1976 and was completed in 1984 at a cost of $2.3 billion. It never became operational as President Corazon Aquino decided to mothball it.
Among the issues against the BNPP are its age, location near fault lines, and the danger it poses to the environment and people.
“We believe the DOT has found the best use for the BNPP…Even if the BNPP never became operational, its tainted history is a hard lesson on how the pursuit of nuclear power has been a gargantuan and unjust burden on Filipinos,” said Amalie Obusan, Climate and Energy campaigner of Greenpeace Southeast Asia.
Last week, DOT Director for Central Luzon Ronaldo Tiotuico identified the BNPP as a tourist destination. He said the plant will be included in a tour package for tourists visiting Bataan, along with other historical and leisure attractions in the province.
Citing a report from the Department of Energy, Tiotuico said the BNPP is still “intact,” including the reactor.
Greenpeace, in pushing for renewable instead of nuclear energy, warned that any investment in the risk-ridden nuclear power sector would only endanger public safety. Unlike nuclear energy, it said renewable energy carries no risk to global security and is environment-friendly.
Greenpeace cited wind power as an example of an energy source that generates more electricity and jobs, but is far cheaper than nuclear power. The group noted that in recent years, over 6,000 megawatts of wind generation were installed every year in Europe – the equivalent of two or three nuclear power plants. – Angela Lopez de Leon
