Willy Marbella, internal deputy secretary general of KMP, said that “the DENR secretary is mistaken if he thinks that only lightweight and wooden materials would be used in the construction of the resort spa facility.”

“In fact they have already transported heavy equipments like backhoes and cranes for digging in the area. We believe that one of the primary reasons for the recent quakes on the island is the diggings done by the heavy equipments,” said Marbella.

Based on a copy of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between Jung Ang and the Talisay government obtained by the KMP, it stated that: The mayor (second party) shall allow the development and operation of entertainment outlets/facilities within the premises of Jung Ang Interventure (first party) structures such as restaurant, internet café, play station and game center, hotel and resort facilities, sports center/ gym, disco club, family KTV, water sports center and others. Both parties shall also endeavor to develop the volcano island into a special economic zone.

Marbella said that these structures are “way off the mark of being part of any eco-tourism package.”

“It is obvious that whoever allowed the issuance of an environment compliance certificate (ECC) may have been bribed by the Korean company or threatened by the mayor, because no one in their right mind would have allowed such structures to be erected on an active volcano. They are playing with lives here. They are also trying to evict more than 6,000 peasants and fisher folks to give way to foreigners,” he said.

Dangerous

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has maintained its stand against the construction of the highly-controversial Taal Spa.

Although Phivolcs is not a party to the issuance of required permits for the construction of the spa resort, Phivolcs Director Renato Solidum said that building a structure at the permanent danger zone should be prohibited because this will endanger the lives of people.

The whole island of Taal is a high risk area and a Permanent Danger Zone (PDZ) because it may be affected by various processes during eruptions that might originate anywhere in the island.
The crater is the most dangerous part of the volcano. It has been noted that the lake in the main crater has become more acidic since September 2006. The Phivolcs likewise monitored the presence of ‘hollow spots’ in the main crater which may suddenly cave in and cause immediate death to humans.

He added that Alert Level 1 remains over Taal Volcano, which means that the main crater should be strictly off-limits to the public because sudden steam explosions may occur and high concentrations of toxic gases may accumulate.

Calls for investigation

Meanwhile, environmental activist group Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment (Kalikasan PNE) said that the DENR should go beyond the mere suspension of the ECC. Clemente Bautista, its national coordinator, said that it should cancel the ECC for good and investigate Jung Ang Interventure.
“The ECC and the Memorandum of Agreement between Jung Ang and local government officials in Talisay were penned despite the obvious absence of free and prior informed consent from the local community, which is a prerequisite for any development project. In fact, the locals were very vocal in their opposition to the spa. The fact that neither the local government nor the project proponents bothered to seek this consent shows a wanton disregard for public welfare which the DENR should not tolerate,” Bautista said.
Bautista said that the P72-million spa project will also result in the displacement of some 6,000 people from the island community’s peasant population, many of whom have lived in the area even before World War II.

Militants have also asked the Senate to conduct a full investigation on the issue, including how the land titles were issued and acquired, and punish those responsible for the alleged anomalous deals on the spa project.

Meanwhile, the fisher folk group Pamalakaya said it would pursue charges against Talisay Mayor Florencio Manimtim, members of the Philippine National Police Regional Mobile Group and the military for allegedly harassing local folk during the construction of the spa.

Fernando Hicap, Pamalakaya national chair, said that they would study the filing of a civil suit against Korean firm Jung Ang Interventures for the environmental damage it caused on Taal Volcano.

Jung Ang had already leveled parts of the volcano for paths up the volcano crater when the controversy broke out.

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