Philippines | Health Department & Frontline Communities Gather to Discuss Revival of Health Impact Assessment

Philippines | Health Department & Frontline Communities Gather to Discuss Revival of Health Impact Assessment

Frontline communities from various mining, coal and waste districts in the Philippines gathered last Friday to meet with Department of Health (DOH) in an aim to revive the Health Impact Assessment (HIA) in light of the influx of environmentally-critical projects in the country.

According to the Department of Health (DOH), HIA is a means for determining the potential and lived health impacts of (1) public policies and (2) development projects in a wide array of sectors. It uses qualitative, quantitative and/or participatory techniques that can provide evidence-based …

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Philippines | Healthy Energy Initiative Presents Health Case Against Proposed Coal Plant in Coastal Town

Philippines | Healthy Energy Initiative Presents Health Case Against Proposed Coal Plant in Coastal Town

The Healthy Energy Initiative Philippines team of Health Care Without Harm – Asia, together with Greenpeace Philippines, presented the health case against a proposed coal-fired power plant threatening a coastal town at a Multi-agency Forum on Impacts of Energy Sources organized by Koalisyon Isalbar Ti Pintas Ti La Union (Save the Beauty of La Union Coalition) in San Fernando, La Union, Philippines.

The town of Luna, a seaside town with white sand beaches and 45 minutes north of San Fernando, has recently been alarmed with the proposed 80-billion …

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Philippines | HCWH-Asia Launches #ChooseHealthyEnergy Campaign with Health Leaders and Advocates

Philippines | HCWH-Asia Launches #ChooseHealthyEnergy Campaign with Health Leaders and Advocates

Pasig City, Philippines – As tribute to the 17th Anniversary of the Clean Air Act on June 23, health and energy justice group Health Care Without Harm launched their #ChooseHealthyEnergy campaign –  an effort that calls on the government and the health sector to speed up the transition towards healthy, renewable energy.

The campaign is supported by a number of notable personalities who will serve as ambassadors for the cause, such as Sen. Risa Hontiveros, an advocate for women’s rights and the environment; Former Secretary of …

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Philippines | HCWH-Asia joins national wave of actions against dirty energy

On March 12, Health Care Without Harm (HCWH)-Asia and its Healthy Energy Initiative Philippines campaign joined coal-affected communities and other civil society organizations at a rally in front of the San Miguel Corporation (SMC) headquarters to demand that the company shut down its coal plants in Limay, Bataan, and shift to renewable energy.

“DENR-EMB Region III should no longer gamble with environmental and people’s health by allowing SMC to continue its deleterious operations in Bataan. And SMC, on the other hand, shouldn’t continue to tarnish the goodwill …

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Philippines | HCWH Asia Supports Community Call To Halt Coal Operations in Bataan

Health Care Without Harm Asia (HCWH Asia) expresses its support to the residents of Bataan who are calling for the immediate suspension of coal operations in Limay, condemning the growing threat of dirty energy on Filipinos’ health.

The group stresses its call to phase out coal in the country after the Department of Environment and Natural Resources recently called the attention of two power plants due to residents’ complaints of respiratory and skin problems caused by coal ash emission last December that allegedly leaked from Petron …

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Philippines | HCWH-Asia supports DENR call to review permissions and operations of coal plants

Philippines | HCWH-Asia supports DENR call to review permissions and operations of coal plants

Health Care Without Harm-Asia supports the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in its recent statement to review all the permits and operations of the Philippines’ coal-fired power plants.

Investing in renewable energy

DENR Secretary GinaLopez said that under her leadership, she will see to it that the country’s energy sources will not be limited primarily to fossil fuels. “I am not keen on limiting the country’s energy mix on coal alone,” Secretary Lopez said, citing the United States and countries in Europe already using renewable energy …

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Philippines | HCWH-Asia condemns killing of Philippine anti-coal activist

Philippines | HCWH-Asia condemns killing of Philippine anti-coal activist

Health Care Without Harm – Asia strongly condemns the killing of staunch environmentalist and anti-coal activist Gloria Capitan in her hometown in Mariveles, Bataan in the Philippines on July 1.

“Gloria Capitan, like many other environmentalists killed before her, sacrificed her life to defend the rights of the powerless and vulnerable. Her murder demonstrates how abuses to our environment cause insurmountable damages not only to our surroundings but to people’s lives, especially the poor,” said HCWH-Asia Director Ramon San Pascual.

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Philippines | Video: Towards Making Healthy Energy Choices

Philippines | Video: Towards Making Healthy Energy Choices

What is Health Impact Assessment (HIA) and why is it important in energy policies and projects?

In celebration of this year’s World Environment Day, Health Care Without Harm–Asia presents this informative and insightful video — featuring experts and participants from the Healthy Energy Initiative workshop in March 2016 — discussing why governments, organizations, and corporate institutions should consider HIAs as vital components of planning and implementing energy policies and projects that may have major impacts on people’s health.

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Philippines | Strong institutions, policies, professionals needed to mainstream Health Impact Assessments

Philippines | Strong institutions, policies, professionals needed to mainstream Health Impact Assessments

This post was originally published by HCWH-Asia.

On March 9, 2016, as part of the workshop organized by Health Care Without Harm-Asia entitled “Towards Healthy Energy Choices in the Philippines: Promoting the Use of Health Impact Assessments (HIA) for Energy Policies and Projects,” representatives from various stakeholder organizations engaged in a dynamic discussion about the future of HIA in the Philippines.

From L to R: Dr. Renzo Guinto (Healthy Energy Initiative); Dr. Beverly Lorraine Ho (Asian Development Bank); Engr. Regina Paula Eugenio (Department of Environment and Natural Resources); Engr. Bonifacio …

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Philippines | JOB POSTING: Healthy Energy Initiative Philippine Campaigner

Health Care Without Harm-Asia is looking for a Philippine Campaigner for the Healthy Energy Initiative.

Position Overview

In 2014, Health Care Without Harm launched the Healthy Energy Initiative, which aims to mobilize the health sector to play a central role in advocating for a move away from fossil fuel-based power generation—particularly coal—and toward clean, renewable healthy energy options. This campaign hopes to protect both the global climate and human health through education, network-building, collaborative research, and advocacy. At present, the Initiative is comprised of a network of …

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