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| Fig. 1: Bataan on a map of the Philippines (Source: Wikimedia Commons)) |
Following the 1973 Oil Crisis, in which members of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries proclaimed an oil embargo, the Philippines turned toward nuclear power as a potential solution to their energy problems. Completed in 1984 and costing over 2 billion dollars, the Bataan nuclear power plant was built under dictator Ferdinand Marcos during his declaration of martial law. Due to complications surrounding misconceptions on nuclear energy and proximity to fault lines, the power plant has generated no electricity since its construction and serves only as a tourist site where people can learn about nuclear energy. [1] (Fig. 1 shows the location of the Bataan province in the Philippines).
Despite providing a solution to an energy crisis, the construction of the Bataan power plant was heavily criticized as a potential hazard to public health due to its location in an earthquake zone. Historically, the peninsula has been known to have very violent and destructive earthquakes; Fig. 2 shows the map of common earthquake zones in the Philippines. [2] Furthermore, the area is connected to Mount Natib, a dormant volcano in a caldera complex. This anti-nuclear movement was spearheaded by Nuclear-Free Philippines Coalition and No Nukes Philippines, two groups that opposed American military presence and construction of nuclear bases to store weapons on Philippine soil. [3] On top of protests and demonstrations during the 1980s hindering progress on powering the plant, the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011 paused government efforts in attempting to revive the plant for use. [4]
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| Fig. 2: A map showing where critical earthquakes occur in the Philippines. [2] (Source: Wikimedia Commons) |
The Philippines currently spends millions of dollars just to keep the facility up despite it not generating any power. The head of the Nuclear Core Group of the National Power Corporation, Mauro Marcelo is pushing toward utilizing the facility, citing that the plan would greatly benefit the Philippines as a source of the cheapest and cleanest available energy. Though in approval of the sentiments, the plant becoming operational is not a top priority of the country and will likely remain a tourist site for educating and generating the money to maintain the facility for a future use. [1,5]
Ultimately, the investment that the Philippines made in the Bataan nuclear power plant was in the best interests of the country, yet due to the politics surrounding American presence and the lack of widespread education on nuclear energy, the efforts were met with great pushback. Electricity costs more for citizens in the Philippines than anywhere else in Asia, excluding Japan. Were the Philippines to invest the 1 billion dollars required to start up the plant, the plant would provide 625 megawatts of clean energy. [5] Though constant political setbacks have pushed the scheduled revival of the power plant back, the department of energy has been urging President Duterte for an executive order for a nuclear power program. Duterte has prioritized safety as his top consideration for deciding the future of the country's nuclear power plan. [6] Hopefully, the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant will be running in future years as it is an infrastructure the Philippines greatly needs.
© Mitchell So. The author warrants that the work is the author's own and that Stanford University provided no input other than typesetting and referencing guidelines. The author grants permission to copy, distribute and display this work in unaltered form, with attribution to the author, for noncommercial purposes only. All other rights, including commercial rights, are reserved to the author.
[1] N. Onishi, "A Nuclear Plant, and a Dream, Fizzles," New York Times, 13 Feb 12.
[2] M. S. Masó, Catalogue of Violent and Destructive Earthquakes in the Philippines (Manila Bureau of Printing, 12 May 12).
[3] Y.-S. F. Lee and A. Y. So, eds., Asia's Environmental Movements (Routledge, 1998).
[4] J. Ruwitch, "Analysis: Southeast Asia Goes Slow on Nuclear," Reuters, 1 Feb 12.
[5] D. Jaucian, "A Look Inside a Sleeping Giant: the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant," CNN, 8 Sep 16.
[6] M. Serapio, Jr., and E. Dela Cruz, "In Power Hungry Philippines, Some Advocate a Nuclear Revival," Reuters, 23 May 18.
