Campaign by Overseas Sorsoganons in Helping Save Sorsogon Bay Now Elevated to Higher Level and Coverage in Court of Public Opinion Expanded to Avail of the Doctrine “The More, the Merrier”

By Lolo Bobby M. Reyes of Sorsogon City, Philippines, and West Covina, California

Part X of a Series on “Saving Our Sorsogon (SOS) Bay”

P ursuant to our strategy of making the alleged ecological rape of Sorsogon Bay an international issue, this journalist has elevated the matter to the Philippine Department of Tourism and the Overseas-Filipino communities.

As the adage goes, “The more, the merrier.” The more people and government agencies become aware of the alleged pollution of Sorsogon Bay and its tributary, the Kawayan River, the better for the environment of the world. After all, any pollution caused to the Sorsogon environment goes global, as the air circulates and ocean water travel in swift currents, especially since Sorsogon Bay is almost the point where the South China Sea meets with the Pacific Ocean.

On June 24, 2011, 11:20:51 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time, Tourism Director for the Bicol Region Maria (Nini) O. Ravanilla replied to a query sent by this writer on June 21, 2011. Here is the reply of Director Ravanilla:

QUOTE.

Hi Bob,

Thank you so much for your continued support. As always, being a Sorsoganon and a Bicolano, we can always count on you to push Bicol tourism forward in the US.

I will try to secure a copy of the Environmental Impact Assessment from the EDC or from the LGU of Sorsogon. Or the last recourse is to request the DENR to provide one thru Secretary Paje, who is a Bicolano himself. Best efforts will be done, Bob.

Kindest regards!

Nini

UNQUOTE.

H ere is the e-mail sent to Director Ravanilla, with copies to the Honorable Secretary of Tourism, Filipino diplomats in Los Angeles, California, and some Bicolano-American community leaders:

From: MEDIABCLA@aol.com <MEDIABCLA@aol.com>
Subject: Re: For the 10th Bicol Tourism, Trade and Investment Mission to USA (3)
Date: Wednesday, 22 June, 2011, 8:23 AM

June 21, 2011

The Honorable MARIA O. RAVANILLA

Regional Director

Department of Tourism-Region 5 (BICOL)

CC:  As Addressed in the CC Box and to

         The Honorable  DOT Secretary Alberto A. Lim

         (Through the Hon. Annie Cuevas-Lim, DOT Office, Los Angeles)

Dear Director Nini Ravanilla:

Thank you for your e-mail of June 18, 2011. Please be assured of our continued support of your office, the Department of Tourism head office and the tourism-trade-and-investment missions to the United States that you have successfully organized. We will publish very-informative articles in our website about your coming Trade Mission and hopefully the other Filipino-American publications may publish the press releases that we will send in your behalf.

During your past visits to Los Angeles, we always talked of the potentials of Sorsogon Province and the Bicol Region becoming the oasis of ecological tourism (ecotourism) in the entire country. We are afraid, however, the operations of the Bacon-Manito (BacMan) Geothermal Plant (BGP) in the Bacon District of Sorsogon City are harming the environment of Sorsogon Province. Sorsogon City's fishermen, shellfish dealers and farmers now claim that the waste waters of the BGP are just poured untreated into Kawayan River, which empties into Sorsogon Bay. The BGP is owned and operated by the Energy Development Corporation (EDC), which is part of the Lopez Conglomerate.

Apparently, the EDC has not submitted any revised Environmental-Impact Study (EIS) to the City Council of Sorsogon and to the Provincial Government of Sorsogon but nevertheless it was granted approval and a Mayor's Permit for its expansion program that will double its generating capacity.

We have written a special series of articles called "Saving Our Sorsogon (SOS) Bay Advocacy, the URLs of which are stated at the end of this correspondence.

We want to ask your help and the assistance of the Sorsogon Province Tourism Council (SPTC) in securing from the EDC a copy of the said EIS, which you may probably be able to bring for presentation to interested Sorsoganons living in Southern California during your July 19, 2011, presentation at the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles, California. The DOT, Region V office, and the SPTC may like also to ask the assistance of a Sorsoganon, the Honorable Secretary Ramon Paje of the Department of Environment & Natural Resources, in seeking redress of the grievances of Sorsogon City's fishermen, farmers and other stakeholders against the EDC.

We will furnish the Honorable Secretary Alberto A. Lim with a hard copy of this correspondence during his visit to Los Angeles, California, on June 29, 2011. We expect that Director Annie Cuevas-Lim will forward to the Honorable Secretary Lim a copy of this e-mail to you.

As we say in Sorsogon, "Salamatonon" for your attention and assistance in saving our Sorsogon Bay,

Very respectfully yours,

Bobby M. Reyes

Editor

www.mabuhayradio.com

and Founder, Media Breakfast Club of Los Angeles, CA.

and a Legal Resident of Sorsogon City

=================================================

Here are links to the  articles in the "Save Our Sorsogon (SOS) Bay" series:

The “Save Our Sorsogon (SOS) Bay” Initiative (Part I)

URL: http://www.mabuhayradio.com/ecology-and-the-environment/the-save-our-sorsogon-sos-bay-initiative

Sorsogon Bay: “So Near, Yet So FBAR.” The “Red Tide” Ban by the BFAR Must Be Lifted  (Part II)

URL: http://www.mabuhayradio.com/ecology-and-the-environment/sorsogon-bay-so-near-yet-so-fbar-the-red-tide-ban-by-the-bfar-must-be-lifted

“Back to BacMan,” Tracing to the Geothermal Plant an Apparent Cause of Pollution in Sorsogon Bay (Part III)

URL: http://www.mabuhayradio.com/ecology-and-the-environment/back-to-bacman-tracing-to-the-geothermal-plant-an-apparent-cause-of-pollution-in-sorsogon-bay

Ultimatum Given to BacMan Geothermal Plant to Treat Waste Water Before Emptying It into a Sorsogon-Bay Tributary (Part IV)

URL: http://www.mabuhayradio.com/ecology-and-the-environment/ultimatum-given-to-bacman-geothermal-plant-to-treat-waste-water-before-emptying-it-into-a-sorsogon-bay-tributary

Sorsoganons Got Guts and Know How to Face Death Honorably (Part V)

URL: http://www.mabuhayradio.com/ecology-and-the-environment/sorsoganons-got-guts-and-know-how-to-face-death-honorably

More On the “Save Our Sorsogon (SOS) Bay” Advocacy: “Arin si Brockovich?” (Part VI)

URL: http://www.mabuhayradio.com/ecology-and-the-environment/more-on-the-save-our-sorsogon-sos-bay-advocacy-arin-si-brockovich

Sorsogon Public Officials Don’t Know How to Google for Geothermal Energy’s Environmental Issues (Part VII)

URL: http://www.mabuhayradio.com/ecology-and-the-environment/sorsogon-public-officials-don-t-know-how-to-google-for-geothermal-energy-s-environmental-issues

Sorsogon Must Go for the Jugular Against the EDC, the Lopez Conglomerate and the PNOC, Et Al, for the Ecological Rape of Sorsogon Bay  (Part VIII)

URL: http://www.mabuhayradio.com/ecology-and-the-environment/sorsogon-must-go-for-the-jugular-against-the-edc-the-lopez-conglomerate-and-the-pnoc-et-al-for-the-ecological-rape-of-sorsogon-bay

The EDC Finally Contacts this Investigative Reporter

L ast Tuesday night, June 21, 2011, Nando Rivera, the public-relations director of the Energy Development Corporation (EDC), contacted by long-distance phone this writer. The conversation was very cordial.

This writer asked to be furnished by e-mail the official response of the EDC in regard to the operations of the Bac-Man Geothermal Plant, including a copy of any environmental-impact study. To date, no e-mail has been received.

A full report of the telephone conversation will be published, if needed, as soon as the e-mail and its attachments are received by this writer from the EDC.

We promised that we would publish the EDC letter and materials in their entirety without any censorship or correction, as we are an equal-opportunity publication.

(To be continued . . .)