HB08456 AN ACT PROMOTING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PHILIPPINE DOWNSTREAM NATURAL GAS INDUSTRY, CONSOLIDATING FOR THE PURPOSE ALL LAWS RELATING TO THE TRANSMISSION, DISTRIBUTION AND SUPPLY OF NATURAL GAS, AND

APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR

Bill replacing harmful coal with safer NatGas as energy source gets House’s final nod

VOTING 215 against three, lawmakers

approved Wednesday on third and final reading the bill Speaker

Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez authored allowing a shift of the

country’s power generation from the use of coal to the utilization of

natural gas.

House Bill (HB) No. 8456 or the Philippine Downstream Natural Gas Industry

Development Act, another Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) bill, which seeks to establish the Philippine Downstream Natural

Gas Industry (PDNGI) to promote the role of natural gas as a “safe,

environment-friendly, efficient, and cost-effective source of energy.”

“It’s high time that we enforce, implement, and use clean energy to

mitigate the effects of climate change. We have to start now to veer

away from the conventional but hazardous method of generating power,

for the benefit of our future generation,” Speaker Romualdez, leader

of the 312-member House of Representatives, said.

The Romualdez-led essential piece of legislation also provides

regulatory policies and promotes the conversion of existing equipment

and facilities from using fossil fuel to natural gas.

Some of the authors of the bill are Reps. Lord Allan Jay Velasco,

Rodante Marcoleta, Yedda Marie K. Romualdez, Jude Acidre, Joey

Salceda, Wilter Palma, Jurdin Jesus Romualdo, Harris Christopher

Ongchuan, Maria Carmen Zamora, Shernee Tan-Tambut, Noel Rivera,

Jonathan Keith Flores, and Ralph Recto.

HB 8456 will compel the Department of Energy to supervise and monitor

the development of the PDNGI, as well as the regulation of the

construction and operation of natural gas pipelines and related

facilities for the transmission, distribution, and supply of natural

gas.

The measure was approved by the House on second reading on May 30,

before the Congress break.

Environmental risks or health hazards, or emissions from coal use - as

a result of combustion - include a substantial contribution to acid

rain, smog, and haze that result in respiratory illnesses and lung

disease, among youngsters and old alike.

About 65 percent of the country’s power needs are derived from coal use, which is why several lawmakers have been pushing for the approval

of such a bill for purposes of accelerating investments, where

domestic incentives can entice foreign investors, or LNG players, to come in. (END) wantta join us? sure, manure...