MANILA — Sustainable energy advocates led by the Power for People Coalition (P4P), and coal-affected communities on Tuesday called on the Department of Energy (DOE) to use its declared coal moratorium to decommission all coal-fired power plants to avoid even worse typhoons from ravaging the Philippines. He noted that coal is the Philippines’ biggest source of electricity due to the “technologically neutral” stance of the DOE, which encouraged the construction of more coal power plants in the country, bucking a trend among advanced countries to stop further reliance on coal. P4P is planning to hold another National Day of Action Against Coal (NDA) to demand that the DOE use the coal moratorium to permanently prohibit the issuance of any new Certificates of Endorsements for coal projects in the pipeline. They want the DOE to eventually revoke and decommission even existing coal plants. The poor are the ones who bear the brunt of the consequences, he said, with their flooded towns and destroyed lives.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer November 17, 2020 08:48 UTC