Palawan theme park proponent sets up P2-B fund to save reefs
PRISTINE CORON A company proposing to build a theme park in Coron, Palawan province, vows to keep the town’s environment pristine. —LYN RILLON
PUERTO PRINCESA CITY—A company that had indicated plans to develop a controversial water-themed tourist attraction in Palawan province, announced recently that it started a P2-billion marine conservation program for the tourist town of Coron, saying it would address threats of oil spill in the area.
In a statement on Tuesday, Coral World Park Undersea Resorts Inc. (CWP) said it had pooled a $40-million (P2.13 billion) “reef conservation fund” aimed at providing emergency cleanup equipment and logistics in case of an oil spill at its project area in Coron.
“The concern is the growing oil and gas interests in Palawan, especially where our tourism plans are located in the town of Coron. This fund is very small compared to other oil spill funds around the world but, at least, it is a start,” said Paul Moñozca, CWP chair and chief executive officer.
But an official of the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD), a provincial agency that serves as a clearing house for all major investments in the province that can affect the environment, said the council was not aware of the new CWP initiative or had issued any permit.
“We have not received any application for this project,” lawyer Adelina Benavente, head of the PCSD legal office, told the Inquirer.
Peza permit
She said the PCSD’s field office in Coron had not received an application related to the supposed CWP project.
In its statement, CWP said it was planning to build a “master-planned community” in Coron, aiming to develop the town as a global tourism destination.
Moñozca did not disclose details of the project, but said his company sought a permit from the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) to develop a water-themed park in Coron.
Officials of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) have been skeptical about CWP’s plans in Coron, saying any large-scale tourism development in the town might go against the government’s thrust of protecting its marine ecosystem.
“They would have to secure a lot of permits, including environmental compliance certificate, permit [for] water use, and most important, an endorsement from the PSDC,” Environment Undersecretary Jonas Leones said in an earlier interview.
Containing spill
The PSDC is mandated to issue a strategic environmental plan clearance to such projects before these are implemented.
Moñozca, however, said the proposed project would “support an enhanced marine reserve and reef conservation initiative” in Palawan alongside an “eco-friendly tourism development.”
“(These projects) can provide the much-needed jobs for the locals and supporting infrastructure for its exponential population growth,” CWP said.
CWP’s “reef conservation fund” will be used to purchase oil and water separation machines made by a US-based company which were supposedly “tried and tested” by other oil companies in the world.
“It will also provide the much-needed logistics team to clean up a potential oil spill. There are currently multiple oil concessions around Palawan and is the biggest threat to an expandable marine reserve to protect the environment in Palawan,” Moñozca said, referring to the Malampaya gas field, located about 130 kilometers southwest of Coron.
The fund’s emergency plan can be expanded to cover an 18,000-square-km radius, covering key areas where oil and gas concessions are present, he said.
He said the fund would be managed by Dr. AB Moñozca Foundation and would only be used in case of an oil spill.
“I also want to be clear that this is a private sector initiative and is a preventive approach. There are no contributions from any other government-related entity or … politicians in political office in the Philippines,” Moñozca said.
