Here’s the rub. Under Region 12’s land use plan, Ned is a watershed area. If mining goes irresponsibly, as what we have witnessed of late, people living in the barangay and close to it would hardly feel its implications. Coal extraction could easily pollute rivers and other water sources. If the government approves the extraction (and combustion) of Lake Sebu’s coal — and I refer here not only to the national government but also (and most importantly) the provincial government of South Cotabato — this southernmost region will be locked in a carbon-intensive economy. In the long term, such a lock-in undermines the capacity of people and communities to be resilient in the age of climate consequences.

Lake Sebu's coal. (2017, March 17). Philippine Daily Inquirer, p. A13.