TAGUIG CITY – The Department of Energy (DOE), as part of its firm commitment to create a culture of energy resilience, conducted a three-day seminar for key government agencies involved in emergency response and disaster preparedness from 20-22 November at the F1 Hotel in Bonifacio Global City.
“The DOE is pushing for a resilient downstream oil industry primarily to help secure a stable and continuous supply of petroleum to those communities that would be affected by natural or human induced disasters, in the HOPEs of assisting them to move forward. Through this event, we are looking forward to the continued strengthening of the partnership between the government and the private sector, and have both work closely together most especially in times of adversity,” Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi emphasized.
Focusing on the downstream oil sector, the seminar, “Resiliency: Beyond Business Continuity, HOPE”, featured technical presentations and briefings from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority on the current challenges the industry must prepare for and address relative to mitigating the impact of natural disasters.
Highlighting the various response capabilities of national agencies, presentations were made on the latest available tools and technologies that enable the proper identification of hazard types and the potential impact of the various risks each type poses.
Organized by the DOE-Oil Industry Management Bureau (OIMB), the event gathered downstream oil industry safety practitioners, and served as a venue for the sharing of best engineering practices and response protocols to help ensure the preparedness and resilience of crucial oil facilities in the face of natural disasters, such as typhoons, monsoon flooding, and earthquakes. Furthermore, the seminar paved the way for the development of a contingency plan for the downstream oil industry.
DOE Assistant Secretary Aicitel E. Lascano delivered the welcome remarks on the first day of the activity, while DOE-Energy Policy and Planning Bureau Director Jesus T. Tamang kicked off the presentations with an overview of the DOE’s Task Force on Energy Resiliency. This was followed by DOE-OIMB's Industry Standards Monitoring Division Chief Alvin David T. Lim's discussion on recent downstream oil resiliency initiatives and accomplishments, as well as specific plans for the future.
Among the other topics discussed included DENR-MGB's geohazard mapping for flood and rain-induced landslide and sinkholes; MMDA-led presentation on Metro Manila's preparation, response and recovery plan for the “Big One” (7.2 magnitude earthquake), an introduction to the Philippine Coastal Storage and Pipeline Corporation; different types of weather disturbances and hazards in the country; resiliency and disaster management; Department of Science and Technology-PHIVOLCS’ Rapid Earthquake Damage Assessment System (REDAS) and/or Hazard Hunter, along with their applications together with a review of their existing Resiliency Compliance Plans; existing emergency plans for the downstream oil industry; and the DPWH’s post disaster road clearances, infrastructure retrofitting and rehabilitation processes.
A workshop on Hazard and Risk Assessment was likewise conducted to consolidate current disaster resiliency and management protocols and standards within the downstream oil industry.
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