Green group Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability (IDIS) has expressed its disappointment over the statement issued by Davao City’s 1st District Councilor Temujin “Tek” Ocampo saying there are misconceptions that the Waste-To-Energy (WTE) is hazardous to health.
Ocampo made the statement during a television interview wherein he said that the information regarding the health impact of WTE on the community, for him, is wrong information or “mali na impormasyon.”
“We are disappointed. We reiterate our firm stand against the WTE project here in Davao, focusing on the health hazards it will cause to the Dabawenyos,” the group said in a statement issued on Monday.
The group reminded Ocampo about the Precautionary Principle (Rule 20, Sec. 1, A.M. No. 09–6-8-SC) which was mentioned in many Supreme Court decisions that “when human activities may lead to threats of serious and irreversible damage to the environment that is scientifically plausible but uncertain, actions shall be taken to avoid or diminish that threat.”
“It means that the presence of threat or risk of crucial damage to the environment and the fact that it lacks scientific certainty should not be used to avoid taking action to prevent that irreversible damage, especially by government officials who are sworn to protect their people,” the group said.
IDIS also reminded Ocampo, including the public and the other pro-WTE members of the City Council, of the study conducted by Dr. Jorge Emmanuel, a professor of Environmental Science and Engineering at the Silliman University in Negros Oriental and former chief technical adviser on global environment projects of the United Nations Development Program, which revealed that WTE incinerators vastly emit toxic chemicals called dioxins and furans.
That waste incineration is also a major carbon emitter according to Lee Bell, POPs and Mercury Policy advisor for the International Pollution Elimination Network (IPEN), who highlighted a recent study by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) that incineration of plastic waste generates large quantities of carbon and carbon equivalent (CO2e) emissions.
The group stated that Ocampo should have considered these abovementioned studies before releasing statements that health hazards stated by environmentalists have no basis.
“All the released information is based on scientific studies by renowned researchers, professors, and institutions. Of which we ask, who now is spreading false or wrong information?” it said.
Earlier this month, Ocampo, chair of the Committee on Environment of the City Council, believes that “time is of the essence” in the implementation of the WTE project that he is proposing in light of the city’s rapid growth.
He said that the local government needs to push through with the construction of the WTE facility because the local government noted an increasing volume of garbage generated daily that comes with the exponential growth of the city.
He assured the locals that the operation of the planned WTE facility would be safe not only for the environment but also for the health of the public.