EDC finds kaingin in seismic monitoring station

DUMAGUETE CITY, Philippines  — The Energy Development Corporation has confirmed the discovery a site of slash-and-burn (kaingin) farming at Panghilakan of Barangay Puhagan in Valencia town, Negros Oriental.

The discovery was made during a routine inspection of seismic or Micro-earthquake (MEQ) sites within the geothermal reservation, according to Vicente Omandam, senior manager for EDC’s Negros Island Geothermal Business Unit (NIGBU) in a media release.

“We have no knowledge on the cause of this kaingin but it was possibly done by the private land owner who used to have vegetables and corn plantations in the area,” Omandam said.

“While we have been striving to transform the farmers in our partner communities from being kaingeros into forest stewards, and have been incentivizing their efforts to maintain our reforestation areas since 1990, kaingin is still a common practice in the area,” Omandam stated in the media release.

Omandam said EDC had installed a MEQ station near the site where the kaingin was later located, as well as in 24 other areas around the Southern Negros Geothermal Project “as part of our six-month seismic monitoring and geoscientific reassessment in the area.”

He said this is not part of any activity for EDC’s proposed 60-megawatt geothermal expansion project. “Apart from applying for an environmental clearance certificate, we have not yet begun any activity for our geothermal expansion.”

The installation of seismic monitoring instruments is a common practice for existing facilities of geothermal companies like EDC and were designed not to cause any damage to the environment, Omandam said.

He also clarified that these are “covered by a separate permit from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources that was approved last year.”   (FREEMAN)