MANILA, July 28 — The House committee on energy chaired by Rep. Lord Allan Jay Velasco (Lone District, Marinduque) this week approved a substitute bill which seeks to prevent obstructions and illegal connections along power lines to ensure the continuous flow of electricity in households, commercial centers and industries in the country.
The unnumbered bill titled “Anti-Power Line Disturbance Act” substituted House Bills 1223 and 1224 authored by Rep. Reynaldo Umali (2nd District, Oriental Mindoro) and House Bill 3351 by Rep. Carlos Roman Uybarreta (Party-list, 1-CARE).
The substitute bill seeks to penalize the introduction of high-growing vegetation and hazardous improvements along power line corridors, with imprisonment of up to six years or a fine of PHP100,000.
The bill authorizes power utility companies to enter public or private properties to conduct trimming, pruning, cutting, or clearing of tall growing plants that interferes with transmission installations.
It also provides for the relocation of persons residing within the right-of-way corridor of electric power lines, in accordance with the Urban Development Act of 1992 (RA 7279).
Velasco recalled that during typhoon Nina, which hit his province, many electric posts went down because of the trees planted right beside electric posts.
Rep. Wilter Wee Palma II (1st District, Zamboanga Sibugay) noted that in Lanao province there are trees planted underneath the power lines which could be hazardous if left unchecked.
Uybarreta, chairman of the TWG that crafted the substitute bill, said that during typhoons, electric posts and transmission lines would fall not because of strong winds but because of vegetation.
“This is precisely the problem we want to address with this bill. In any typhoon, close to 50 percent of the causes kung bakit bumabagsak iyong linya at nawawalan ng kuryente ang probinsiya is not because hindi kayang i-withstand nung poste iyong hangin but because nababagsakan ito ng vegetation,” Uybarreta said.
He said clearing the right-of-way of vegetation will lessen by 50 percent the budget for rehabilitation and power restoration in areas.
Velasco backed Uybaretta’s statement, citing that during the last typhoon, the government spent between PHP300 million and PHP400 million just for power restoration alone.
“With this bill, the government will not be spending that much amount because the power lines will be managed well so that no trees or branches will fall on them,” Velasco said.
Lawmakers also asked during the hearing whether the intertwining of power lines with cable and telephone lines is allowed.
Manila Electric Company’s (MERALCO) engineer Edgardo Kempis said they are aware of the situation and that they have an office called Foreign Attachment Management Office that handles applications for attachments to poles.
Palma said the issue is easy to handle since there are only a few telephone companies nowadays.
Palma said an immediate action and solution to the problem that has been discussed since the 16th Congress is needed. “We need your help to implement the bills or the laws that we are crafting now,” he added. (PR/PNA)
