Petrol processing plant suspected of polluting Mangaterem
HOW prepared are local governments in handling environmental crisis?
This question loomed after a processing plant handling petroleum by-products, located in Barangay Suaco in Mangatarem, suspected to be posing a threat to the town’s environment and residents has been reported by a resident.
Gilberto Diaz-Castro, a former member of the United States Army with training as a fireman, field sanitation supervisor and heavy equipment repairman, has sounded the alarm on the plant which, he said, does not seem to have the right waste disposal facilities.
While the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has responded to Castro’s report by sending a representative to check on the plant, which is owned by Mar-Tan enterprises, based on the mayor’s permit issued to it, it has not taken any definite action on the complaint.
Castro, now a resident in Mangatarem, said based on his assessment, the plant does not have a containment dike that would prevent wastes from flowing into the nearby river and ricefields.
Being a former fireman, he also noted that the local fire station does not have equipment and personnel training to handle hazardous materials.
SPILLED FUEL?
Meanwhile, Castro also reported that he could smell hydrocarbon fumes from his residence which is 300 meters away from the plant which he suspected to be spilled diesel fuel.
He said his suspicion was confirmed when his attention was called by the plant’s neighbors that when the plant operates at night, they wake up with black soot on their nostrils.
He also complained that the road access to the plant is also reportedly now in disrepair due to the cargo trucks carrying the by-products.
Castro wonders if the DENR has checked if the plant has the required environmental impact study, appropriate insurance policies to cover medical expenses for affected residents and indemnification of farmers’ losses in case of contamination, road maintenance and improvements, and decontamination procedures in case the plant is closed.
Copies of Castro’s letter to the DENR were also sent to 2nd District Rep. Leopoldo Bataoil, The Sangguniang Panlalawigan, and Mangatarem Mayor Teodoro Cruz.–(PIA Pangasinan)
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