Antipolo firm may be sued over oil leak

Officials of Teresa town in Rizal province—which ended up a “catch basin” for spilled bunker fuel—were considering suing the cement company responsible for leaking oil into the Teresa River.

Marlon Pielago, Teresa environment officer, said local executives were discussing whether or not to file charges against Solid Cement Corp., a cement manufacturing firm in Antipolo City, that spilled 2,000 liters of bunker fuel into the river system.

Teresa, being the next town to Antipolo, “was the first one affected as it ended up being a catch basin [for the spilled fuel],” Pielago added.

The oil spill started in Kaynaog Creek in Antipolo City, flowing to the nearby Tagbak River, still within the city. It then ended up in the 15-km Teresa River which passes through Teresa and Morong towns before finally heading down to Laguna Lake.

Dawna Marly Yanong, Teresa disaster risk reduction and management officer, said the spill was first reported late Monday evening after officials from Barangay Poblacion noticed a “very foul smell coming from the river.”

Yanong said the spill has affected six other barangays, namely May-iba, Dalig, San Gabriel, San Roque, Bagumbayan and Prinza.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) have started investigating the oil spill.

“The company claims it was an accident [but] takes full responsibility anyway. It promised to pay for the cost [of the clean up],” Yanong said.

At press time, personnel from the Coast Guard Station at Laguna de Bay (CGS LGDB) were continuously monitoring the movement of the fuel spill which has started to drain into parts of Morong River in Morong, Rizal, the nearest tributary leading to Laguna Lake.

On Tuesday, three oil spill booms were deployed to the site of the oil spill. Additional oil containment equipment would also be placed at the mouth of Morong River, the PCG added.