Scientists caution lawmakers on move to revive nuke plant

MANILA, Philippines - A group of Filipino scientists on Monday warned lawmakers and policy makers that several issues must be answered before making any decision on the rehabilitation of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant. AGHAM or the Samahan ng Nagtataguyod ng Agham at Teknolohiya para sa Sambayanan said the move to rehabilitate the plant reopens the debate on its safety, economic viability and sustainability. "While the effort of the proponents and the government to reopen the plant seems to be in full steam, reopening the...plant should take into account the economic, technical and social aspects of the plant's operation," said Dr. Giovanni Tapang, AGHAM chairperson. He said that even before considering using the plant, every pipe, every component, equipment or system has to be inspected by a competent independent team. Leaving the preliminary inspection to interested parties such as KEPCO is questionable, said Tapang. KEPCO operates a similar plant in South Korea and has shown interest in operating the Bataan plant. Tapang said the International Atomic Energy Agency has cautioned the Philippines in the past not to let "commercial interests take precedence over safety issues" when considering the revival of delayed nuclear plants. "The nuclear plant is being proposed as part of the plan to address a looming energy shortage as well as to reduce electricity prices. We wonder why Congress and the Arroyo government can mull over providing funds to reopen the plant and yet continue to push for the sale of other power plants under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act," said Tapang. He said that instead of looking at nuclear power to provide cheap energy, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo must realize that most of the energy resources she has auctioned could have provided the Philippines cheap and renewable energy. Tapang's group said the Philippines has many available energy resources, but these have been all put to sale by the government to private independent power producers. He said the proposed revisions to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act to accelerate privatization "leads us to expect more of the same in power rates," including increasing pass-on rates and currency adjustments. "If government was really serious in lowering electricity rates, it could have done away with the value-added tax, rescinded onerous PPA contract and scrap the EPIRA," Tapang said. He said the government must deal with "the genuine concerns of the community" surrounding the Bataan nuclear plant. "As nuclear power is not without any risk, there should be a serious evaluation as to the sustainability of operating the BNPP: how the economic, technical and social factors add up and whether this will be of genuine benefit to the people," Tapang said. - Joe Torres, GMANews.TV