Geology expert asks DENR to make mining audit public

MANILA –The head of the country’s national geological institution is calling on Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Regina Lopez to make public the basis for her directive on the closure of 23 mining operations and the planned suspension of five others across the country to enable future engineers and geologists to learn from her decisions and determine how to best enforce responsible mining practices.

Dr. Carlos Arcilla, director of the University of the Philippines’ National Institute of Geological Sciences, in a statement, on Monday said while he agreed with the DENR chief that irresponsible mining operations should be shut down, he was puzzled as to why Lopez had not furnished the mining firms and even the media copies of the mining audit, which should have been the basis for ordering their closure and suspension.

“We are in agreement that the irresponsible mines should be closed. No argument on that. That is the purpose of the audit –technical people checking whether the mines are fulfilling the obligations under law to protect the environment,” Arcilla said.

“We are interested to know what the bases are for closing mines –we have to teach future geologists and engineers the correct and scientific ways to mine so as not to endanger the environment,” he added.

Arcilla also pointed out the alleged DENR Secretary’s glaring conflict of interest in handling the Department’s portfolio, citing the case involving the massive oil leak at the West Tower condominium in Makati City that was caused by the First Philippine Industrial Corp. (FPIC), a company owned mostly by Lopez’s family.

Although the case is considered as one of the worst environmental disasters in the country, Arcilla said, Lopez has not done anything to comply with a Supreme Court order directing the DENR to oversee the full cleanup by the FPIC of the remaining pollutants in the groundwater and soil that spilled over to the rest of Barangay Bangkal, where West Tower is located.

The oil spill had forced the evacuation of all residents of West Tower due to the danger of potential of explosion, and formed a huge underground plume comprising petroleum products containing carcinogenic benzene which have polluted the soil and groundwater of Bangkal, Makati’s most populous barangay.

According to Arcilla, the case was the basis of the issuance by the Supreme Court of its first Writ of Kalikasan.

“Secretary Lopez, already six months into her tenure as head of DENR, has not done anything to mitigate, publicize and lessen the suffering caused to the displaced people of West Tower and Bangkal,” said Arcilla, who was hired as head consultant of the Makati City government to investigate the 2010 oil leak.

He added that in contrast, Lopez “has been very vocal in her desire to close errant mining companies, but she has not shown concern for a definitive case of massive pollution caused by a company which is owned by her family, showing deliberate conflict of interest.”

Arcilla noted that when Lopez announced the closure and suspension of the mining sites, technical personnel of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) which conducted the mining audit, were barred from attending her press briefing.

“The basis for the mine closures have not been made public, and they have not been given to the mines that are to be closed,” he said. “This tells me that the main basis for mine closures is emotion, superficial impressions.”

Meanwhile, Arcilla pointed out that engineers and scientists who have spent years studying mining and other extractive industries, should be the ones relied upon in cleaning up the mess caused by irresponsible mining practices.

“Those who claim they are the only people who can clean the environment and the only people who love the environment and this country, without adequate training are seriously misguided. They are even dangerous if they dictate policy. People who are ignorant and do not know they ignorant and are self righteous are truly dangerous to society,” he said.

Arcilla also noted that in the case of the tailings spill of Philex Mining Corp. a few years ago, the DENR chief immediately ordered the firm not only to clean up the spill but to pay a fine totaling more than Php 1.4 billion.

“This tailings spill, with serious environmental impacts, did not cause deaths, did not displace people from their homes, and the residual tailings are not anymore endangering lives and the environment. In contrast, the Bangkal spill has displaced 100 families, many of whom have not yet returned to their homes after almost 6 years, and will continue to be threatened by the cancerous benzene pollution caused by the spill. But FPIC has NOT been fined even a single peso by DENR,” he said.

In a related development, Global Ferronickel Holdings, Inc. on Monday denied allegations of environmental violations of Platinum Group Metals Corporation (PGMC), saying these allegations “have no factual basis.”

FNI, in a statement, said the Mine Audit Report, released by the DENR Secretary Oct. 21, 2016, recommended “the continuation of PGMC operations and gave the company high ratings for environmental compliance and management and community development.”

As such, it said the “closure order” against PGMC due to the alleged siltation of coastal waters and mining in a watershed, “is a surprising contradiction of the findings and the recommendations of the Mine Audit Report.”

Atty. Dante R. Bravo, President of Global Ferronickel Holdings Inc., said the firm had provided direct and indirect employment to at least 4,000 people, with nearly 85 percent of the employees belonging to the local community.

“Counting the multiplier effect of these jobs, this impacts the lives of about 20,000 Filipinos. With the Mines and Geosciences Bureau’s regulatory oversight, we have reforested more than 652.8 hectares, rehabilitated 33.1 hectares of mined-out areas, constructed 45 settling ponds and 30 check dams and initiated various activities to protect water bodies. These are only some of the reasons why PGMC recently received three Presidential Mineral Industry Environmental Awards (PMIEA),” he said.

“We applaud and support the campaign for responsible mining. At the same time, the reason we are obligated to correct these false allegations is that we have a responsibility to protect the improved way of life of our communities, as well as the interests of our stakeholders. PGMC is hopeful that this response to the allegations will be helpful to the decision-making process of DENR and Secretary Lopez,” he added.