By Louise Maureen Simeon (The
Philippine Star) | Updated September 22, 2016 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines – Twenty-two
mining companies are in possible trouble after the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources (DENR) confirmed that more than half of the country’s 40
metallic mines are recommended for suspension following the end of the
month-long audit on the industry.
Environment Undersecretary Leo
Jasareno, head of the audit team, said 12 mining firms are on the verge of
suspension, on top of the 10 companies that were already stopped.
“All reports have been submitted and
12 companies are recommended for suspension [by the audit team]. The other 18
are under final reviewed already,” Jasareno told reporters.
“The violations include inadequate
social development, mining practices and siltation among others. But most
common is their environmental violations,” Jasareno said.
He emphasized that of the 22
companies, majority are nickel miners and are located in Mindanao.
Twenty-eight of the 40 metallic
mines in the country are nickel miners which use the open pit method, thus more
prone to risks, Jasareno said.
The DENR is set to announce the
final result of the mining audit on Monday after cancelling it twice due to
document finalizations.
Upon the release of the result,
Environment Secretary Gina Lopez will forward the report to the regions to
implement the decision of whether they are suspended or not.
Jasareno clarified that companies
could still appeal the verdict they may receive.
“The ones who will pass the audit
will be the new set of mines that have complied with the standards and will be
the model (of the mining industry),” he said.
The DENR is yet to quantify the
value of the total production of the companies recommended for suspension, but
earlier reports said the 10 initially suspended companies share an aggregate
10-12 percent of the country’s overall mineral production.
Last July, Lopez issued her first
memorandum order subjecting all operating and suspended mines to an audit to
determine their compliance with environmental standards. In particular, the
audit was aimed at determining the adequacy and efficiency of environmental
protection measures, identify gaps in protection measures and determine
appropriate penalties in case of violations.
The Mines and Geosciences Bureau
(MGB) aimed to raise the bar on responsible mining in the country with a
stricter set of criteria in the audit of around 40 metallic mines nationwide.
Since then, 10 mining firms had been
suspended including all operations in Zambales – Benguet Corp. Nickel Mines
Inc., Zambales Diversified Metals Corp., LNL Archipelago Minerals Inc. and
Eramen Minerals Inc. – for breach of environmental standards.
Other firms that were suspended
include the country’s only iron-producing mine Ore Asia Mining and Development
Corp., Samar-based operations Mt. Sinai Exploration Mining and Development
Corp., EMIR Mineral Resources Corp., Berong Nickel Corp., Claver Mineral
Development Corp., and Citinickel Mines and Development Corp.
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