‘Barge carrying used oil, not nuclear waste’

A barge detained by the Bureau of Customs and the Philippine Coast Guard in Surigao City on suspicion it was transporting nuclear waste is carrying used oil, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources said yesterday.

President Arroyo praised authorities for "the successful interception of this toxic waste" and has ordered a "full alert on similar dumping attempts," her spokesman Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said.

The barge Cheryl Anne, which was being pulled by the tugboat Jacob I, came from the Pacific island nation of Palau and arrived in Surigao on Aug. 23.

The barge, loaded with more than 1.6 million liters of used oil, has been held for several violations of maritime and marine pollution regulations, said local Coast Guard chief Cmdr. Gonzalo Magno Jr.

Environment Undersecretary Roy Kyamko said the National Anti-Environmental Crime Task Force has been watching out for the barge since July and their information indicated that the shipment would involve "used oil."

"I don’t think there is such a thing as nuclear oil. Based on our information this is used engine oil from the Palau Public Utility Corp. (PPUC)," said Kyamko, deputy chief of the task force.

Customs Commissioner Napoleon Morales has formed an investigating panel to determine the barge’s exact origin and who should be held liable.

"We are now determining if it is used oil or nuclear waste. But regardless of what it is, one thing is sure — we will return this cargo to its exporting country. We can’t allow them to use the Philippines as a dumpsite," Morales told reporters.

Mrs. Arroyo has ordered a full report on the nature of the cargo as the country grapples with a massive oil spill, Bunye said. "We will not allow our territorial waters to become transport lanes or dumping sites for hazardous materials."

He said all attempts to "degrade our environment and threaten public health must be stopped."

Magno said the tugboat and the barge stopped at the Surigao port because they were running out of fuel and needed water and other provisions.

He said he ordered the vessels — both Philippine-registered and manned by Filipino crew members — not to leave port after finding they did not carry the required oil dispersants and had no garbage and shipboard oil pollution management plans. They also lacked a Customs importation permit for the cargo.

Magno said the coast guard headquarters had recently alerted its stations nationwide to be on the lookout for "this kind of barge."

"It so happened that it went to our area," he told The Associated Press.

Magno also said the shipping documents showed conflicting destinations for the cargo. The vessels were told to proceed from Palau to Manila, Iloilo and Malaysia.

He added the documents did not specify the source of the used oil, samples of which he sent to Manila for laboratory examination.

Morales said he had met with a representative of the company that owns the shipment, Powerzone Philippines, last Monday and was told that Malaysia is the cargo’s destination.

"We will see if this claim is correct. If it is indeed correct, we will allow their exportation. There would be no more issue since their stopover here due to engine problem is allowable under international humanitarian laws," he explained.

Last month, a tanker carrying 2 million liters of bunker oil sank during a storm, damaging vast fishing areas and marine reserves around the central Philippine island province of Guimaras.

Officials want the barge out of the country following the sinking of the tanker Solar I.

"So we have no choice but to force the consignee to bring out of Philippine jurisdiction this toxic waste. We are coordinating with the Philippine Navy and Philippine Coast Guard to make sure this unwanted import is taken out of the country," Morales said. — With Paolo Romero, AP