Local churches, clean energy groups, and communities across Quezon province celebrated World Environmental Day with a bold commitment to uphold their right to a healthy environment and sustainable energy, as the province continues to confront pollution from a massive fleet of operating and proposed fossil fuel projects.
World Environment Day coincides with the 10th anniversary of the groups’ and local communities’ resistance against Atimonan One Energy (A1E), a 1,200 MW coal project proposed by the Manila Electric Company (MERALCO), which has faced severe delay and heavy opposition from local stakeholders since 2015. The commemoration, themed Atin Muna, was held in the form of a mass, followed by a prayer march and a fluvial parade.
“Ten years ago, our plea to stop the coal project started through collective prayer. We commemorate that day today through once again joining in prayer and action. We in the faith community have always been vocal in our cry to protect our people and the environment, because faith is void when humanity and love for the creation is absent. That is why we will not stop pushing back against this destructive coal project until it is fully shelved,” said Rev. Msgr. Emmanuel Ma. Villareal, founding member of Quezon for Environment (QUEEN).
This year, the Catholic Church also marks the 10th anniversary of Laudato Si’: Care for Our Common Home, the renowned encyclical and legacy left by the late Pope Francis, which inspired universal ecological stewardship, including the call for an urgent transition away from dirty energy in response to the climate crisis.
“Quezon province and the Philippines as a whole have a rich yet untapped potential for clean energy from renewables. Despite this, we are the country’s coal capital – with many coal and even gas projects either operating or still being proposed. It is possible for us to turn away from dirty energy resources, and it can be done in the most transformative and empowering ways. As we remember a decade of fighting against coal in Atimonan, we also herald a new stage of even bolder rejection against fossil fuels in our province,” said Rev. Fr. Warren Puno, Convenor of Quezon for Environment.
In May, the QUEEN and dozens of other local and national organizations and networks wrote to the Department of Energy (DOE) welcoming its revocation of A1E’s exemption from the 2020 coal moratorium, and called on the Department for a total shelving of the project.
“Quezon’s impacted communities and their supporters have spoken: we want a sustainable energy future, not coal or gas. Already, Meralco is facing much controversy for its skyrocketing electricity rates, unreliable services, and anticonsumer contracts. Meralco need not add another destructive project to the list of its sins. There is no place for A1E in Quezon,” said Gerry Arances, Convenor of P4P.
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