House probe on the offshore mining operations in the Visayan Sea

Cebuano solons push House probe
By Wenna A. Berondo
September 10, 2007

Three Cebuano congressmen have joined hands with party-list representatives in pushing for the conduct of an inquiry on the offshore mining operations in the Visayan Sea, particularly the oil exploratory activities in Tañon Strait.

Reps. Eduardo Gullas (Cebu 1st District), Benhur Salimbangon (Cebu 4th District), and Antonio Cuenco (Cebu City South District) are among the co-authors of the House Resolution No. 212, which directs the House Committee on Natural Resources to investigate the impact of offshore mining in the Visayan Sea.

Reps. Jocelyn Sy-Limkaichong (Negros Oriental 1st District), George Arnaiz (Negros Oriental 2nd District), and Henry Teves (Negros Oriental 3rd District) along with militant lawmakers Luzviminda Ilagan and Liza Maza of Gabriela, Crispin Beltran of Anakpawis and Satur Ocampo of Bayan Muna are also fully supportive of Resolution 212 initiated by Rep. Teddy Casiño.

The House Committee on Natural Resources is expected to start its investigation soon because the resolution, which was filed last Monday was certified as “urgent.”

“This is an effort by a diverse set of political species in the House. We are very much heartened that the six administration solons from two Cebuano speaking provinces in the Visayas have seen it fit to jointly file House Resolution 212 that directs the House Committee on Natural Resources to immediately probe the impact of offshore mining in the protected seascapes of the Visayan Sea. This is a major issue of our Visayan compatriots that must be immediately investigated,” Casiño said.

The solons are concerned of the 34 service contracts for offshore mining in environmentally critical waters of the Visayan Sea that include the Tañon Strait, a body of water separating the island provinces of Cebu and Negros, the Cebu-Bohol Strait, separating the provinces of Cebu and Bohol, as well as the waters off Antique, Leyte, Palawan, Mindoro Occidental, Albay and Camarines Sur.

The Visayan Sea, which is surrounded by the islands of Cebu, Bohol Negros and Panay, is known to be one of the world’s richest marine biodiversity areas.

“International marine experts consider the Philippines the ‘epicenter of the richest marine biodiversity in the world’ with the ‘highest diversity and endemism of organisms found in the Visayan Sea particularly in the waters off the coasts of Cebu, Bohol and Negros.’ This area is being targeted for oil and gas exploration operations even though these are protected seascapes rich in marine biodiversities, including other fishing grounds declared as environmentally fragile by government,” Casiño said.

In the Tañon Strait, two oil and gas exploration companies — Forum Exploration Inc. of Canada, and Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. Ltd. (Japex) — have 7-year contracts with the Philippine government to explore and undertake oil and gas exploration, and another 25-year contract for the extraction and controlling process.
In the Cebu-Bohol Strait, the oil and gas exploration activity covering 444,000 hectares of marine waters will be undertaken by Trans-Asia Oil and Energy Development, Alcorn Gold Resources Corporation, Petro Energy Corporation and farmed-in by the Australian-owned AustralAsian Energy Ltd. and Ottoman Energy Ltd.

The ongoing oil and gas exploration activities in the Cebu-Bohol Strait have met strong opposition from small fishers, local government officials, beach owners and environmental groups who fear long-term, adverse effects on the lives and livelihood of the common people in Central Visayas.

“In the name of public interest, environmental protection, social justice and the national welfare, the impacts of offshore mining in the Visayan Sea deserves an immediate full-blown House inquiry,” Casiño said.

Japanese environmentalists yesterday confirmed the claim of the local fishermen that the offshore mining activities, especially the seismic survey conducted by Japex had greatly affected their livelihood.
Members of the Friends of the Earth-Japan chapter had just finished their investigation on the oil exploratory activities conducted by Japex in Tañon Strait and other parts of Visayan Sea.

Naomi Kanzaki of the FOE’s development finance and environment program said that there was decrease in the catch of local fishermen and their livelihood was affected because many of their payaws or fish pens were destroyed when Japex conducted its seismic survey in Tañon Strait two years ago.

But she said that they still have to gather additional information on the activity undertaken by the Japanese company. She added that when they go back to Japan in few days, they will meet with the officials of Japex to bring to them the concerns of the fishers and residents.
Kanzaki said that they also need to have the environmental impact study, which Japex submitted to the Environmental Management Bureau when in applied for environmental compliance certificate to be allowed to conduct drilling operations in Tañon Strait in November.
The fisherfolk’s organization welcomed this recent development, thanking the Cebuano congressmen for supporting their call for an investigation on the activities in Tañon Strait which they call as illegal.

Vince Cinches, executive director of the Fishermen Development Center said that they are hoping that the Japanese environmentalists could convince Japex officials in Japan to stop the oil exploratory activities in the Visayan Sea.

Likewise, he added that with the recent move by the Cebuano congressmen and the party-list representatives, they are expecting that offshore mining in the Visayan Sea would be stopped because the area is a protected seascape and activities that might destroy the marine biodiversity should never be allowed there.(/NLQ)