Benham Rise

Last week, the President ordered the Philippine Navy to chase away all foreign vessels fishing or doing research explorations in Benham Rise. This announcement came after a foreign diplomat said that the Philippines does not own the whole of the undersea region of the Benham Rise.    

But just a few weeks ago, the Department of Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano allowed China to do research in Benham Rise and approved 13 research applications from the United States, nine from Japan and four from South Korea.

Then the Palace jester comes out with his own statement on the research. As usual he got the public’s attention on it. He said he was misunderstood when he said, “no one can afford to do research because, apparently, it’s capital intensive.” Wow! Why so absolute? Did he just scoff at us?  He should not mince his words. He must remember that he is speaking on behalf of the President.

Anyway, notice how all three have different statements. I wish the President sees the whole picture of every issue and plans his roadmap properly with his people. His Administration must get their act together because in many instances they contradict each other. As a result, they confuse us more. The Filipinos are already wounded and tired of politics. The President should talk to his men with more clarity and direction before they make pronouncements. Such hullabaloos create adverse effects to the country.

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What unknown treasures are at the Benham Rise that is of great interest to local and foreign researchers? It was named after Andrew Kennedy Benham an American Admiral. The Benham region is 13 million hectares. It is about 250 km in diameter and rises over 2,000 meters above the sea floor, from below 5,000 meters below sea level to above 3,000 meters below sea level. It lies in the Philippine Sea around 250 km east of the Philippine Trench and near the south of East Luzon Trench.

Benham Rise is not subject to any maritime boundary dispute unlike the Spratly Islands in the West Philippine Sea. People and governments have started to look into this undersea region because of the possible mineral and oil deposits that may be found there.

The United Nations affirmed the Philippines’ sovereignty rights over Benham Rise in April 2012. Under Paragraph 1, Article 77 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, a state has sovereign rights over its continental shelf for the purpose of “exploring it and exploiting its natural resources.”

Several groups in the country like marine experts from DOST and the UP Marine Science Institute have attempted to do research but couldn’t get that deep to the ocean floor. Some teams only managed to stay at the Benham Bank for about five to ten minutes.

Studies conducted by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), indicated that Benham Rise has large deposits of methane in solid form. This could turn the Philippines into a natural gas exporter and could make the country one of the richest countries in the world.

According to Dr. Carlos Primo David, executive director of the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) the Philippines has the sovereign rights to explore and exploit mineral and genetic resources in the Benham Rise, which scientists believe holds large amounts of natural gas deposits and manganese nodules. But the extended continental shelf (ECS) refers only to the resources underneath and not the waters above. This means technically we cannot build any structure nor prevent ships from passing through. The Benham region extends another 300 nautical miles in the Pacific Ocean. This is where the ECS becomes tricky, as foreign vessels are technically allowed to sail or pass through this area – an exercise of the “freedom of navigation.”

Research and exploration is inevitable but everyone seems to want to take control over it. The government must have the will to get to the bottom of this region in order to discover the great possibilities. But if we can’t seem to get better navy boats, fighter jets and army tanks to protect our land and seas, not to mention more efficient MRT/LRT trains, then, how can we do it? By the way, experts from Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (Jamstec) and Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIOST) have intentions to collaborate in conducting research and exploration using its Y6-billion submarine research project. Let’s see how this Administration will win it or lose it.

Yes, we have become so paranoid about how government and public officials run the country; exploit our natural resources and possibly deceive us. History should remind us of what Aguinaldo and his men did to the Filipinos, how he sold the Philippines to the Spanish for $800,000, how Spain sold the country to the Americans for $20 million, how Sabah was given away and now how China has invaded and claimed our territories. Are we about to lose Benham Rise?

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The Panagbenga Festival in Baguio is on. The Philippine Military Academy Homecoming Weekend is next week. Many government and non-government conferences, seminars and team-building programs have chosen Baguio to be the place to be. Is Baguio ready for the big crowd? What will the visitors see and experience this time?

I’ve seen how the City of Pines has risen from the rubble. There are good efforts in putting more order in a very crowded city which was for many years, a ghost town. This is good business for Baguio. The downside and the mayor’s challenge now is traffic, crime and air (not to mention ‘people’) pollution.

Mayor Mauricio Domogan a three-term mayor and three-term member of the House of Representatives has been working hard in trying to bring back the glory and splendor of Baguio. But it seems to be quite a challenge to him because of the fast growth and development of its tourism and real estate industry.

He should work on restoring its beauty as many of the tourist attractions are already over-powered with tiangges, ugly landscapes and trash. Every corner of the city seems to have flea markets of sorts making Baguio a big marketplace. Burnham Park and Wright Park are covered with aluminum walls blocking the trees and gardens. The roads and sidewalks need reinforcements as well. The city is turning into a parking lot. The churches are covered with shanties and barong-barong type of stalls some of which are covered with plastic, cheap looking flowers. I think the mayor should consult more cultured and sophisticated artists, interior and landscape designers not to mention urban planners. By doing so, he will make his visitors happy and his people proud.

Dios ti agngina!