Feature story - October 11, 2006
A surprise from the shores of Guimaras was brought to the doorsteps of Petron corporation’s headquarters in Makati City. Activists delivered a drum of spilt bunker fuel, highlighting the company's lack of urgency in retrieving the remaining fuel which continues to seep from the tanker chartered by the oil giant, which sank earlier this year.
Greenpeace activists in protective gear surprised Petron Corporation, when activists delivered a container drum of spilt bunker oil.
Greenpeace surprised Petron Corporation, when activists delivered a container drum of spilt bunker oil.
Greenpeace surprised Petron Corporation, when activists delivered a container drum of spilt bunker oil.
The drum was hand-carried by Greenpeace activists who wore
protective gear used for handling hazardous materials. In Petron's
courtyard, Greenpeace volunteers laid down a banner with a replica
of Petron's logo and the words "Petron, stop the spill now!". The
banner was trod on by three other activists who left black
footprints leading to Petron's door, in their wake.
Dragging their feet
Our campaigner in South East Asia, Beau Baconguis, explains
why. "From the start, Petron's response to the spill has been
extremely disappointing - initially they even shunned
responsibility for the spill," she said. "Up to now, they have
failed to take urgent action on the pressing need to retrieve the
rest of the sunken oil. Were Petron genuinely concerned about the
well-being of Guimaras, its unfortunate residents, and the
environment, they would have guaranteed the costs to immediately
initiate the retrieval operation."
Sixty days later
It seems Petron is trying to distance itself from financial
responsibilities associated with the retrieval effort. The company
has been more preoccupied in downplaying the extreme urgency of the
situation. It is now 60 days after the oil spill, and the
responsible parties are still vacillating over the question of
money-with little thought to the dangers the excruciating wait
continues to pose on the environment and the well-being of people
in the area.
"Every day that passes means more bunker fuel leaks into the sea and onto unfortunate coastal villages."
According to the government, retrieval of the oil now depends on
whether the International Oil Pollution Compensation (IOPC) will
approve the compensation of the siphoning of the oil from the
sunken vessel. But the IOPC is not set to make a decision until
October 23. Even if approved, retrieval is expected to begin only
in December. Meanwhile, every day that passes means more bunker
fuel leaks into the sea and onto unfortunate coastal villages. The
contamination and suffering, as well as the health and
environmental risks continue.
Greenpeace calls on Petron to hasten the retrieval of the oil by
guaranteeing the expected costs. Petron should also:
- immediately intensify relief operations
- commit to paying for the continuing clean up, rehabilitation,
and monitoring of the area, and
- compensate the communities for the lost incomes since August
11, for up to at least 1 full year after the oil has been removed
from underwater.
"If Petron thinks they can rest easy after their much-hyped cleanup... they can think again"
"This is no time to be protecting profits yet again to the
detriment of human health and the environment," Beau adds. "If
Petron thinks that they can now rest easy because of their
much-hyped clean-up, which in fact does little to address the
problem, they can think again. As long the source of Petron's oil
remains underwater, no PR blitz can erase the trail of destruction
that leads to their doorsteps."
Take action as an Ocean Defender
Sign up as an Ocean Defender - it's free!