Greenpeace twits DENR, DOE chiefs on eve of Earth Day

MANILA, Philippines - On the eve of Earth Day, environmental group Greenpeace challenged government agencies to stop the use of coal for energy, and to support renewable energy instead. Volunteers dressed as Environment Secretary Jose Atienza Jr. and Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes, both of whom are part of the newly formed "Carbon-Cutting Coalition." "In reality, their agencies abet rather than prevent the construction of coal-fired power plants, which scientists now recognize as the single greatest cause of global warming," Greenpeace said in an article on its Web site (www.greenpeace.org.ph). The volunteers held an "Earth Day Barbecue" at the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) compound in Quezon City to call attention to such a "distorted" policy. At the barbecue, activists "roasted" a balloon replica of Planet Earth over charcoal, which is safer than the coal used in power plants. This was meant to illustrate how the relentless pursuit of coal-fired power plants is cooking the planet. Also, the activists launched the Greenpeace report “True Cost of Coal" which details how the use of coal as fuel causes irreparable damage to the environment, people’s health, and communities around the world. “The government’s chosen Earth Day theme this year is ‘Earth Survival: Climate Change Solutions.’ The single greatest move the government can do to help stop climate change is to phase out coal and stop the construction of coal plants," said Greenpeace Southeast Asia Climate and Energy campaigner Amalie Obusan. The group also blasted the DENR for “deliberately turns a blind eye on the environmental costs, continuing to issue Environmental Compliance Certificates to these dirty and polluting plants." “The Department of Energy meanwhile has at least nine coal plants in the pipeline for construction or expansion. This is clearly a case of sheer hypocrisy," Obusan said. - GMANews.TV