MAITUM, Sarangani (MindaNews / 13 October) — After doing the dishes, Eda pulled out a plastic sheet to cover the plates and utensils “aron dili maabugan og karbon (So as not to gather carbon dust).”
The 43-year old Maguindanao housewife who asked that her real name be withheld, lives in a coastal community in Barangay Kalaong in this quaint Ilocano-speaking town along the mouth of Sarangani Bay, a government-declared protected seascape.
Kalaong is where coal-mining subsidiaries of San Miguel Energy Corporation (SMEC) operate a port where hundreds of huge coal-laden lorries travel 60 kilometers every day from coal mining sites in barangay Ned, Lake Sebu town, to stockpile coal at Kalaong port and await shipment by boats and barges, that regularly call at the wharf.
SMEC’s coal mining subsidiaries – Bonanza Energy Resources, Inc. (BERI), Daguma Agro Minerals Incorporated (DAMI) and Sultan Energy Philippine Corporation (SEPC) – hope to extract around 70 million metric tons of coal in Barangay Ned.
At least two boats and two barges – one towed by a tugboat, arrive at the port each week, said Intoy Gusa, a fisherman who asked that his real name be withheld for security reasons.
Where the ships bring the coal, residents can only guess. “Sa Mati (Davao Oriental) man kuno ug sa Luzon,” Gusa recalls what he heard.
From the Maitum-Palimbang highway, one can see the hill-like stockpiles of coal on a wide area, without any cover to prevent it from being blown by the wind or carried by rain to the sea.
What Eda does in her kitchen to prevent the dark powdery element from gathering on their plates and utensils is also being done by other households in the village. Several residents also lamented that they cannot anymore plant vegetables in their backyard because of the “black dust.”
“Coal man kuno nang itom nga abog, makadaot sa lawas (That black powder is allegedly coal, it is toxic),” Gusa said.
Itchy waters
Gorio, a coconut farmer in sitio Tarucao in Kalaong, would not dare take a dip at the beach again after he developed rashes weeks ago after swimming.
This happened in September, days after typhoon Enteng, which triggered strong waves that sent a tugboat at the port tilting to its side and spilled fuel and oil to the sea, he said.
Pressed for their response to MindaNews’ earlier query about the incidents in Kalaong, the management office of the Sarangani Bay Protected Seascape (SBPS) said their investigation found “no damage was done to marine organisms in the area.”
In their October 10 response after MindaNews’ two emails, SBPS said: “Upon receipt of the report from CENRO (Community Environment and Natural Resources Office) Kiamba the PAMO (Protected Area Management Office) SBPS provided technical personnel to immediately proceed to investigate the alleged oil spill incident. The adherent marine hazards released by the vessel may cause changes in water quality that can damage various marine organisms in the area. Water quality sampling was conducted to assess whether the oil spill had affected water quality in the area.”
“The results showed no abnormal changes in the water quality parameters, based on the standards set by DAO (Department Administrative Order No. 2016-08 (Water Quality Guidelines and General Effluent Standards of 2016) for Sarangani Bay’s Class SB and SC waters, as reported by BMB monitoring,” the SBPS email stated.
“Nangatol ko, nagburotburot akong panit (It was so itchy, my skin developed rashes),” he said. Gorio did not go to a doctor, thinking the itchiness will just go away, but it persisted, he said showing MindaNews the itchy eruptions on his neck.
Members of a family who was visiting a neighbor, went swimming but hastily left the beach complaining of skin irritation, Gorio said.
Contaminated sea water
Gorio and Letty Baguindoc, also a resident of Tarucao , gave similar stories about their experiences in cooking fish and liteb (shellfish) gathered along the shores in Kalaong.
“Dili makaon, baho (Not edible, they emit foul odor),” The two said in separate interviews. Baguindoc has advised shellfish gatherers to stop picking them at the beach as these could bring health issues later on.
Gorio said to avoid catching contaminated fish, fishers from the place would go out to the open sea, to be sure of clean catch.
The beach near the port is littered with patches of coal, apparently washed ashore, Gusa said. Every time they try to pull up their fishing nets, Gusa said, it turns black with coal.
Slow business
Baguindoc and her husband Velentin, a retired army soldier, noted there are now only a few who go to the beach. The Baguindocs own a beach resort in the place where beachgoers flock especially during weekends.
On October 1, Valentin noted a drastic decline of beachgoers that used to crowd their resort. When the waters started smelling like fuel oil, “bihira na lang ang naliligo” (only a few come to swim), he said, pointing to an empty shoreline amid a fair sunny weather.
He said they were hoping that authorities could do something about the situation. But, “nothing was felt” from local authorities to address the situation in the area, despite the apparent environmental issues.
They heard nothing from authorities about these incidents, he said.
Deaf ears
MindaNews’ attempts to know what the local government has been doing about the issue in Kalaong proved futile. In the two attempts to talk with Kalaong barangay chair Joey Abequibel, personnel at the barangay hall said the official was not around and may have attended a meeting“kasi naka long sleeves siya kanina” (because he was wearing long sleeves earlier).
Barangay kagawad Julieto Melendrez, who was around during the first visit at the barangay hall, appears to have no idea about how serious the environment issues are in the barangay. He said they are regularly conducting coastal cleanups.
He said they are in talks with SMC to compensate owners of fishing bancas that were damaged when a company barge ran aground off sitio Kawa in Barangay Mabay, also in Maitum. In that incident, residents said corals were damaged.
SBPS said in their email to MindaNews, “As for the barge (that) ran aground in the same town, the PAMB imposed an environmental damage fee.” No amount as to how much was the fee was mentioned in the email, though.
Melendrez also mentioned that they got the commitment of the company operating the port to give priority to workers who are from Kalaong as workers at the port are not from Kalaong.
MENRO inaction
At the Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office (MENRO), MindaNews was made to wait for MENRO head Nannette Nacional who allegedly went out to withdraw cash from a nearby teller machine.
After almost an hour of waiting, MENRO staff Sherwin Cuarezma asked if MindaNews had made an appointment to meet and interview their head. He also hinted on the need to get permission from the town mayor or the municipal administrator and doubted if their head will still return to the office. “Hapon na kasi” (it is late afternoon). It was still 4 pm on September 30, an hour before the office closes.
Pressed about what their office has been doing on the issues raised by Kalaong residents, Cuarezma said it was the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) that checked on the matter.
“Wala kasi kaming equipment to determine yung problema sa Kalaong. Ang PENRO ang nagpunta doon kasi sila ang may gamit” (We have no equipment that would address the problem in Kalaong. The PENRO went there because they have equipment). Asked when the PENRO went to Kalaong, he did not respond.
He said their office was never informed by PENRO about their findings as “they left (without) passing by our office, anymore.”
No appointment, no entry
MindaNews sought company officials at the SMC port in Kalaong on October 1 but was denied entry unless requirements were met. A man who was talking over a security guard’s transceiver radio said MindaNews must first secure an appointment by writing a letter to the port manager, Noe Martinez.
The guards would not say if Martinez was at the port and did not respond when asked who was the person talking on the radio transceiver.
Asked for the email address and phone number of Mr. Martinez, a security guard told MindaNews to wait at the port gate for a safety officer who was sent to meet the news team.
The safety officer came after several minutes and merely repeated what the man on the transceiver previously said about the requirement for an appointment letter. Asked for the email and phone number, the safety officer, who declined to identify himself, told us to wait as another person will see the team.
After waiting for about half an hour, the guard told the news team, “negative sa email ug phone number Sir. Magsulat na lang mo ug ipadala diri” (negative on the e-mail and phone number, Sir. Just send your letter to us here).
The “diri” which the guard was referring to is San Miguel Corporation port, Kalaong, Maitum, Sarangani province, a remote place, about 20 kilometers from the town proper and along the Maitum–Palimbang highway. Maitum is around 114 kilometers away from General Santos City.
MindaNews e-mailed SMEC on October 6 for an interview, re-sent the mail on October 9 but as of 7 p.m. Sunday, October 13, SMEC has yet to reply. (Rommel G. Rebollido / MindaNews)
