Oil spill contained, cleaned up

A company operating a power plant in Calapan, Oriental Mindoro, had already contained and cleaned up at least 65 percent of areas affected by the accidental leak of oil from the plant’s storage tank.

In a statement, DMCI Power said the accident occurred after faulty equipment led to the accidental overflow of some 800 liters of fuel into the power plant’s tank yard and surrounding creek and rice fields.

But contrary to reports, the company said only 2.5 hectares of rice fields and a hectare of grassland were affected by the oil spill.

As of Nov. 9, the company said it had recovered more than 100 drums of oil water and more than 700 sacks of oil-contaminated materials.

More than 17,000 man-hours had been devoted to cleaning the spill, the company said.

The creek around the plant had been 100-percent cleaned, the power company added.

Rice fields affected by the spill would be completely cleaned in 10 to 15 days, it added.

“The weather in Calapan has been erratic,” said the DMCI Power statement, quoting Calapan plant manager Florante O. Ylagan.