Coal activist’s murder fuels ‘green’ movement
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO—Slain anticoal activist Gloria Capitan was remembered and honored on Thursday as advocates of renewable energy stepped up the environmental campaign.
“As we remember her legacy, as well as the lives of those who were killed for opposing coal operations in their respective countries, we also bear in mind that the anticoal movement has never been stronger than it is now,” said Ian Rivera, national coordinator of the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice, during the launch of the “Ending the Age of Coal” campaign in Quezon City.
Shot dead by a lone gunman on July 1, Capitan, 57, was president of Samahan ng Nagkakaisang Mamamaya ng Lucanin (SNML) that clamored for the closure of an open-coal storage facility in Mariveles town in Bataan province.
She was buried on Sunday with no clear answers from policemen investigating her murder. The Bataan police said no evidence so far has linked her killing to her advocacy.
There are 15 coal-fired power plants that operate in the country and 29 more are proposed.
In a statement, Rivera said the movement for a more sustainable and people-centered energy system is “getting stronger” because the Climate Change Commission has ordered a review of proposed coal projects while President Duterte and Environment Secretary Gina Lopez have stated prorenewable energy pronouncements.
For the Philippines to meet its commitment to reduce emissions and combat the rising global temperature, the government should order a stop to the use of coal as a source of power, Rivera said.
Gerry Arances, convenor of the Center for Energy, Ecology and Development, said the anticoal movement abroad has grown.
“In the past few years, however, many countries like Norway, Denmark and even state governments from the United States have stopped funding coal projects, as a response to growing pressure from grassroots movements and environmental lobbyists,” Arances said.
He said China and India have started phasing out coal operations.
“A recent study from Oxford University has found that coal power plants are more and more becoming ‘stranded assets,’ meaning they are likely to be kept running in spite of the technology being obsolete and unprofitable economically,” he said.
The Philippines, he warned, could end up having “outmoded, costly and destructive energy resource” if it continues using coal. Tonette Orejas, Inquirer Central Luzon
