MASINLOC, Zambales—As leader of the San Salvador Biodiversity Friendly Association, Edna Sarmiento is committed to conservation projects such as planting mangroves, monitoring environmental violations, and pushing cleanups in the Masinloc-Oyon Bay Protected Seascape and Landscape (MOBPLS).

This is why Sarmiento and her group were gravely alarmed when, last Oct. 24, a barge carrying more than 11,000 metric tons of coal ran aground and spilled its cargo off San Salvador Island where it took shelter from Severe Tropical Storm “Kristine” (international name: Trami).

The MV Katapatan 2, owned by SMC Shipping and Lighterage Corp., was on its way to La Union along with a tugboat, Katapatan 1, when it encountered bad weather. The vessels left Semirara Island in Antique on Oct. 17.

A day before the barge spilled its coal cargo into one of the fish sanctuaries in the MOBPLS, another vessel loaded with more than 8,000 MT of coal capsized in Sorsogon Bay as Kristine battered Bicol, according to a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) report. 

San Salvador, about 2.5 kilometers from the Masinloc mainland, has been declared a Municipal Marine Reserve and Sanctuary by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 231. Supervised under a community management system, it is part of the 7,558-hectare MOBPLS, the first protected marine area in Central Luzon and considered one of the key biodiversity areas in the country.

“We volunteered to pick up the coal scattered on the shore,” Sarmiento said in Filipino.  But fisherman Jeffrey Elad said the collected coal had yet to be removed from the area

As of Oct. 31, at least 3,304 sacks of coal have been retrieved by more than 200 island residents, volunteers, and workers from the coal-fired Masinloc power plant, according to the PCG station in this province. The cleanup was suspended for water sampling by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) with the PCG Marine Science Technician.

‘Dirty coal’ 

The grounding spells another disaster in terms of protecting biodiversity and sustaining the livelihoods of communities that depend on the MOBPLS, Lidy Nacpil, coordinator of the Asian Peoples’ Movement on Debt and Development, said in a statement.

“Besides the risks and consequences of a marine accident, … [it] also highlights the dirty costs of transporting coal and the inefficiency of the fossil fuel system,” Nacpil said. 

“We all know that when coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, is burned to generate electricity, [it releases] planet-heating emissions,” she said. “But … transporting coal also causes air pollution, and when transport accidents happen, they can lead to coal spills, which is toxic to marine life as well as to water sources and public health.”

Experts from Oceana Philippines, a nongovernmental organization focused on protecting the oceans, told Coverstory.ph that the grounding of the Katapatan 2 alone posed an impact on the substrate, such as corals, seagrass, and other marine life in the area. 

Oceana marine science specialist Diovanie De Jesus said at least the physical extent of the damage should be assessed before and after the barge’s removal. “When the vessel is removed, the impact will probably be greater because if it is pulled, the substrate will be scraped,” he said.

According to De Jesus, the difficulty in removing coal spillage is the physical dimension. Unlike oil, which can be extracted because it will float, coal will just drop to the substrate.

“The coal can cover whatever substrate is there, [whether] corals, seagrass, or even sand. When the coal covers it, particularly coral or seagrass … it will affect the organisms in the ecosystem,” he said, adding:

“So when the substrate—the home of other organisms, fish, and other marine life—is damaged, it will affect the food web. They can ingest these hazardous chemicals, or they will lose their habitat, and most likely, they will move to another place to live. Or if the impact is high, they can die.”

Civil liability

Lawyer Rose Liza Eisma-Osorio, legal and policy director of Oceana Philippines, said that because the site is a protected area, dumping any hazardous materials there can be considered a “prohibited act” with a fine of up to P1 million and imprisonment of up to six years. 

“It is necessary to assess the area and take into account the biodiversity value or conservation value under the E-Nipas (Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System) Act. This is usually lighter in terms of evidentiary proof of this valuation that the court looks at,” she said. “So, to establish civil damages, it is just a preponderance of evidence.” 

Aside from the E-Nipas Act, Eisma-Osorio said, the barge managers also have civil liability under the amended Fisheries Code and the Clean Water Act because coal spilled or placed in a water body can also be considered pollution.

“There is the jurisdiction of the DENR to take measures to abate the pollution, and then the local government units will share the responsibility. These agencies are needed, including the Coast Guard, in coordination with the Department of Agriculture for the fisheries resources,” she said.

Nacpil said tens of thousands of vessels are plying their trade on the oceans carrying fossil fuels. They consume much energy and emit a lot of greenhouse gases to transport coal, as well as gas and oil. 

She said extracting and processing these fossil fuels also uses much energy and releases emissions that are harmful to the planet and to human health.

“In short, we have a brutally inefficient energy system. We call on the government to heed the global call to raise ambition to address climate change. We need a rapid phaseout of fossil fuels and a direct transition to a renewable energy system,” Nacpil said.

“Fossil technology, which is being undercut by renewables globally, uses and wastes a lot of energy to produce energy. Renewables, like wind and solar, require no extraction or processing energy, and no need to transport if they are locally generated,” she added.

‘No action’

Fisherman Elad, who also helped in collecting coal last week in San Salvador, said those involved should move quickly to get the task of removal done. 

“They said the coal must be removed immediately to prevent damage to the ocean, but until now, it has not been done. Especially now that the waves are calmer in the area where the coal was spilled, it would be easier to get it. But so far, there has been no action. The coal we got last time is still there today,” Elar said in Filipino.

He said that before the authorities prevented them from catching fish in the area, they were able to dive and check the situation: “The corals that were hit are crushed. Some of the fish, shells, and starfish are dead.”

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