Avoiding electromagnetic radiation dangers to children

In this age of global warming and catastrophic climate change, the Philippine government in 2022 held public bidding for electric power companies to set up power plants and supply the country’s need for 1.966GW of clean electricity.  The winners, the Aboitiz and Ayala corporations, are building solar plants in Zambales along with transmission towers and cable networks across the province to join the national grid.

Eventually, the solar power supply will benefit the Philippines and offset the CO2 emitted by coal-fired power plants and vehicles that are causing global warming.

So far, the two Zambales-based solar plants are not yet operational.

However, Ayala has sadly added many tons to the CO2 in the atmosphere by the logging and cutting of thousands of trees to make way for power transmission pylons and cables. They have not shared a replanting plan as yet.

These cables radiate electromagnetic waves that are dangerous to humans, especially children.

Aboitiz has not yet begun cutting trees and constructing transmission pylons. To its credit, the company has a replanting plan and invited the Preda Foundation to work with them to monitor it.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) makes its assessment of trees that will be cut and the number of saplings needed for replanting. They have a 90 percent chance of survival. Philippine and international environmental protection groups are encouraged to monitor replanting.

The work will begin in August during the rainy season. Aboitiz has agreed to reroute the cables to a safer distance from the Preda children’s home in Subic. This is good cooperation and agreement.

It is a very ironic situation since the Preda Foundation’s recovery and healing home for abused children in Subic was built to save them from the electromagnetic radiation from unnecessary cables erected along the national highway close to its earlier facility at Kalaklan, in Olongapo City supposedly for an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting at the Subic Bay Freeport Zone in November 1996.

The Preda Foundation mounted a strong protest as the cables in Kalaklan were declared oversized and unnecessary since a 65KV power line passed over a cemetery from the Kale sub-power station. Its campaign to protect children caused the worldwide condemnation of the authorities by national and international child protection groups. A Philippine congressional hearing was held.

Now, the same danger has been avoided by the agreement with Aboitiz to prevent any danger from electromagnetic radiation to the 83 children in the Preda Foundation home in Subic.  

Solar power is a good source of clean energy to address global warming. The climate is changing relentlessly and creates a danger of more frequent heat waves, more intense typhoons, droughts, wildfires, polar melting, rising sea levels, and the extinction of animals and fish.

This is a growing, global catastrophic situation allowed to happen by neglect and failure of human intelligence and rational thinking. The industrial world continues to burn more coal, oil and gas that fire up electric-generating power plants. These are the main causes of CO2 emissions that continue rising by the month, in turn causing global warming.

The focus should be on setting up more renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind, geothermal, and bio-gas power plants.

It’s a challenge as many deny that the climate is changing for the worst of mankind. Rich countries are still giving huge financial incentives to oil companies. We ask why and can only presume that they get that public money paid back as re-election donations to keep the corrupt politicians in power who will then continue approving laws supporting the oil companies and promoting fossil fuels.

We can presume such temptations are there in the Philippines, too. May we be spared such evil.

It is human greed, perversity, the love of riches and power that is corrupting the politicians and allowing the fossil fuel industries to continue. The planet is overheating because the CO2 gases fill the skies and block the heat escaping from Earth.

The planet is 1.1 degrees Celsius warmer than it was 100 years ago. This continues as there is a 50 percent increase in the CO2 pumped into the atmosphere. Unless global warming is held at 1.5 degrees Celsius, catastrophic consequences will surely come. The planet will be almost uninhabitable as humans, plants and animals cannot adapt and evolve quickly enough to survive.

In 2016, global warming reached its highest peak ever. The temperature reached 1.28 degrees Celsius above what it was before the 19th-century pre-industrial level. Climate experts are sure the day will come soon when 1.5 degree Celsius will be exceeded.

The billions of poor people around the world who live in disaster-prone areas with weak housing structures, landslides and flood-prone areas will suffer the most from the devastating effects of climate change.

Global warming cannot be ignored; it is a matter of national emergency. It is bringing serious threats to the population. More tax exemptions should be introduced to promote renewable energy generation. Electric cars are part of the answer. A law is required to ensure all gas stations have recharging stations.

The Philippine government is encouraging more clean energy power plants. Solar power is best for the nation. However, power plant companies must not be allowed to destroy forest trees without massive replanting of mature saplings and must not endanger children with electromagnetic radiation.

*The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official editorial position of UCA News.