Clean energy advocates, led by Center for Energy Ecology and Development (CEED), have asked the Supreme Court to junk Executive Order (EO) No. 30 issued by former president Rodrigo Duterte in 2017.
CEED, along with Quezon for Environment (QUEEN), Atimonan Power to the People, Philippine Movement for Climate Justice (PMCJ), and Sanlakas has filed a memorandum to the Supreme Court on January 23 for the en banc against EO 30.
Advocates “fear” that the EO would lead to the expansion of fossil fuel and coal projects in the country.
“EO30 has only reinforced the country’s reliance on fossil fuels like coal. It is high time that the Supreme Court sees EO30 for what it is: a blessing for the fossil fuel industry,” CEED executive director Gerry Arances said in a statement.
CEED stressed that 74 of the 149 energy projects that were listed as projects of national significance are fossil fuels, including the 15 megawatt (MW) Palawan CFB coal-fired power plant and the Batangas Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Terminal.
The clean energy advocates stated that the increased dependence on fossil fuel is “one of the drivers of high electricity prices felt across the country.”
“The continued enforcement of EO30 is a threat hanging over the heads of Quezon residents. We fear that the Atimonan power plant project will push through under the guise of economic urgency, with the environment ultimately suffering,” Diocese of Lucena Ministry of Ecology Director Fr. Warren Puno said.
