ILOILO CITY -- The Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) in Western Visayas is investigating the alleged hazardous coal ash used as filling materials in the Iloilo Esplanade project here.
In a media interview, Ramar Neil Pascua, legal officer of EMB-6 said the inter-agency task force created to investigate the issue already took some samples from the main source in Cabatuan, Iloilo to determine if there is really presence of coal ash in the mixed filling material.
The task force is composed of representatives from the EMB-6, regional offices of the Department of Public Works and Highways, Department of Health, among others.
Pascua said that the team took 10 samples from the mixed filling materials from the Esplanade project last week, however, the result was “inconclusive” because other filling materials have also sulfate content.
“Based on the result of the 10 samples taken from Esplanade, sulfate was really found but is not yet conclusive if the sulfate was from the coal ash because it was also determined from the analysis that the other filling materials have presence of sulfate,” he said.
Pascua said that the samples taken by the task force today from the mixed filling material will undergo confirmatory laboratory analysis.
“If there will be low result of sulfate from the main source, there is a big probability that the sulfates that we found from the samples from Esplanade really came from the coal ash. But if there will be high sulfate content in the filling materials from the main source, there is a probability that there is no coal ash,” he explained.
He added that the task force also took samples from the Panay Energy Development Corp. (PEDC) where the coal ash was hauled. He said that it will undergo test for toxicity characteristics through leaching procedure to determine if it is hazardous.
The test results on the samples, he said, are expected to come out within the next two to three weeks.
In the meantime, Pascua said PDEC regional director, Sophie Manuel has issued an order directing the PEDC management to temporarily stop the hauling and disposal of their coal ash until such time the issue is resolved.
An IA clearance to haul coal ash from PEDC was granted to Cesar Rey Sancho, owner of Sancho-Lavilla Builders Inc. for four projects including the Iloilo Esplanade - with a total volume of 380,000 cubic meters last year.
Other projects affected by the issue are those in the towns of Leganes and Sta. Barbara in Iloilo province.
The issue on the alleged hazardous coal ash used as filling material stemmed from the complaint of a private person.
The Sangguniang Panlalawigan passed a resolution during Monday's session, requesting Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Sr. to create a team that will collaborate with EMB in the conduct of investigation regarding the coal ash used as filling materials in Sta. Barbara and Leganes.
Board member Leicel Seville, the resolution's sponsor, said they wanted to be updated on the conduct of the probe to find out whether the material brings environmental or health hazard based on the result of the samples. (PNA)
