By Jonathan L. Mayuga &
Elijah Felice E. Rosales - September 6, 2017
The Chamber of Mines of the
Philippines (COMP) on Wednesday said it will continue to work with the Duterte administration
as it vowed to convince President Duterte on the soundness of the open-pit
mining method.
On Tuesday, Duterte said he agrees
with environmental advocate, Regina Paz L. Lopez, that the open-pit mining
method should be banned, eventually, but said he will give mining companies
time to find other ways of extracting minerals.
Interviewed during the ongoing
Mining Philippines 2017 International Conference and Exhibition at the Sofitel
Hotel in Pasay City, COMP Executive Director Ronald Recidoro said miners do not
see the supposed ban as being implemented immediately.
“The President said ‘eventually’, he
would like to see the closure of open-pit mining and that he will give mining
companies enough elbow room for an eventual change in the modality of getting
what’s inside the bowels of the earth,” Recidoro added.
He said the President’s statement on
open-pit mining “is an expression of his frustration over the images of illegal
mining that he has so far seen”.
“I think there is still an
opportunity to convince the President that open-pit mining, if done responsibly
and rehabilitated properly, can and should still be allowed,” Recidoro added.
The COMP official said miners would
cooperate with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and
its attached agency, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) to implement mining
regulations strictly in all areas of the country.
“Open-pit mines can be operated
safely and efficiently, and once exhausted, can be rehabilitated and
transformed into other land uses like agriculture, forestry or even
ecotourism,” Recidoro said.
In the Philippines, where most ore
deposits for copper and nickel are near the surface of the earth, he said the
only way to extract these minerals is through open- pit mining.
“Let us just make sure it is done to
the best and highest standards,” he added.
COMP Chairman Gerard H. Brimo said
the current mining law mandates mining companies to do progressive
rehabilitation, adding that there are several companies that have successfully
transformed mined-out areas into productive land dedicated to food production.
COMP, under its new leadership,
vowed to “go beyond compliance” in heeding Duterte’s call for the industry to
shape up, by planting more trees and taking care of their host communities.
Brimo, during a speech on Wednesday,
reiterated that COMP will start to police its ranks through its oversight
committee tasked to investigate members accused of wrongdoings.
Ban still in effect
Environment Undersecretary Jonas
Leones, who represented Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu, clarified that the
ban on open-pit mining has not been lifted.
However, he said the DENR is not
keen on reversing the policy just yet, saying Cimatu is awaiting the recommendations
of the Mining Industry Coordinating Council (MICC), as well as the President’s
policy direction.
Early this week, MGB Chief Wilfredo
G. Moncano was quoted in news reports as saying that he will recommend the
lifting of the open-pit mining method.
If this is true, Leones said the
recommendation may form part of the ongoing MICC review process.
But, he again insisted that the MICC
recommendation will have to be reviewed by Cimatu.
“Of course, the Secretary will take
up the issue of open-pit mining with Duterte after discussing its pros and cons
with various stakeholders, including [the] COMP, [the] MGB and MICC,” he said.
“For now, there is a status quo. The open-pit mining ban remains in
effect.”
DENR priority
In his keynote speech read by
Leones, Cimatu said the DENR is “serious” about making right the sound
management of the country’s natural wealth.
Mining has been identified as one of
the DENR’s focus areas when it adopted a development framework called Program
for Environment and Natural Resources for Restoration, Rehabilitation, and
Development (PRRD), which is the DENR’s roadmap for 2017-2022, he added.
The PRRD is anchored on the core
principles of good and effective governance to ensure the integrity of the
DENR’s frontline services; inclusive growth for the country through the
improvement of the socioeconomic conditions of our local communities,
especially those who host mining activities and social justice, where people,
regardless of their status in life, could enjoy equitably the benefits derived
from our natural resources and a healthy environment.
The strategic elements to implement
the priorities under the PRRD, he said, are best remembered using the acronym
SRAC which stands for sustainability of interventions to the environment and
its social impacts; research-based decision making that is science and
evidence-based; adaptive and flexible to the current state of the environment;
and collaborative partnerships with all stakeholders in planning and
implementation of DENR programs, projects and activities.
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