BAGUIO CITY – Anti-mining advocates and civil society groups dominated the 6-hour public hearing called for by the House committee on natural resources to gather the sentiments of the people on the ground on the impact of mining in the country that was held at the Baguio City Multipurpose Hall Thursday afternoon.
Representatives from the Save the Abra River Movement, Cordillera Peoples Alliance, Peoples Mine Watch, Save Mankayan Movement, and other civil society groups from the towns of Quirino, Santa, Ilocos Sur and provincial officials of Ilocos Sur jointly expressed their vehement opposition to mining because of its destructive effects to the environment, the pollution of the river systems and their agricultural farms depriving the indigenous peoples of their sources of livelihood, thus, the need to stop the operation of Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company and the subsequent repeal of the Republic Act (RA) 7942 or the Philippine Mining Act of 1995.
The House committee on natural resources chaired by Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate requested the oppositors to submit their detailed position papers relative to their stand against mining for the appreciation of the committee and to serve as a guide for them in the introduction of amendments to the mining law and for the eventual passage of a new mining law that will protect the rights of indigenous peoples, increase in the benefits of the local and national governments and the guaranteed preservation and protection of the environment, the agricultural farms and health of the people.
Several local officials from Ilocos Sur and Benguet also presented their positions against mining because of the alleged minimal share of the local governments that were received over the past several years from the mining operations.
Engr. Fay W. Apil of the cordillera office of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB-CAR), Reynaldo S. Digamo of the Cordillera office of the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB-CAR), and Engr. Ralph Pablo of the Cordillera office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR-CAR) appeared before the members of the House committee and claimed that all issues pertaining to the serious negative effects of mining to the environment were given sufficient attention and were subjected to evaluation and validation by their technical personnel coupled with the fact that issues on subsidence, pollution and mining related concerns raised by the people were monitored and given the appropriate actions not only by the concerned government agencies but also the mining companies being questioned.
For his part, Atty. Roland Calde of the Cordillera office of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP-CAR) pointed out that the agency had been advocating for the rights of indigenous peoples over their ancestral domain and that companies seeking the exploitation, development and utilization of the natural resources within their domain must seek the free and prior informed consent of the concerned IPs.
Officials of Philex Mining Corporation led by resident manager Engr. Manuel Agcaoili were also invited to appear before the committee to present its best practices having one of the 13 mining companies in the country that passed the stringent mine audit conducted by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Philex also presented how it was able to hurdle the August 1, 2012 accidental leak of its tailings pond that nearly resulted to its closure but it was able to institute the appropriate measures that resulted to its being certified compliant to international standards.
The committee hearing was an offshoot of House Resolution No. 72 entitled “Resolution Directing the Committee on Natural Resources, The Committee on Ecology, the Committee on Health, the Committee on Agriculture, the Committee on National Cultural Communities and the Committee on Local Government to Conduct a Joint Investigation in Aid of Legislation, on the Impact of Mining in the Country, its Effects to the Environment, Agriculture, the Health of the Public, the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and its Contribution to Revenues of Local government Units and the National Government and Economic and Social Development, and to Introduce Reform Measures that will Effectively Address the Weaknesses, Shortcomings and Failures of the Mining Act of 1995 and all other Mining Related Laws, Rules, Regulations and Issuances and the Insufficiency or Absence of Institutional Mechanisms for Effective Evaluation and Strict Regulation of Mining Operations in the Country.”
By HENT