The Environment Department suspended the mining operations of two chromite and nickel mines in Homonhon Island and threatened to shut down a coal mine in Semirara Island.
Environment Undersecretary and head of the mining audit team Leo Jasareno said the agency suspended the operations of Mt. Sinai Mining Exploration and Development Corp. and Emir Mineral Resources Corp., which were operating mines in Homonhon Island, Guiuan, Estern Samar.
“The audit team has determined that Mt. Sinai which mines chromite is causing siltation in coastal waters,” said Jasareno.
He said Mt. Sinai was not practicing engineered mining methods and caused deforestation in the area. The miner produced 50,000 tons of chromite last year.
Jasareno said Emir Mineral Resources, which operates a nickel mine in the same area, was also suspended due to the same violations. Emir Mineral produced 150,000 tons of nickel, which were shipped to China in 2015.
The government has so far suspended the mining operations of 10 mining companies, including eight nickel producers. Jasareno said all suspensions were indefinite.
“The DENR will still be looking into the violations and then depending on the gravity of the violations, they may be allowed to resume operations, suspend or cancel permanently,” Jasareno said.
Meanwhile, Environment Secretary Regina Lopez said she asked Sagittarius Mines Inc., Semirara Mining and Power Corp. and Century Communities Corp. to explain why the government should not cancel their environmental compliance certificates.
“They will be given seven days to respond and if they don’t fulfill, then I will cancel the ECC,” Lopez said.
Jasareno said there were complaints against Semirara, including massive clearing affecting the island ecosystem, degradation of water quality and siltation of the marine environment.
“ The problem with Semirara is the open pit mine is now below sea level. How would DMCI [Holdings] rehabilitate the area?” Jasareno said.
Jasareno said the Semirara Island covers an area of only 5,000 hectares while the pit occupies 40 hectares. He said a new expansion area covers 600 hectares in the middle of the island.
Lopez, however, said the government “cannot just closed it [Semirara].”
“The problem is that Semirara produces low-grade cheap coal and we are very much dependent on coal. We don’t want to have brownouts but Semirara has to get its act together,” Lopez said.
Meanwhile, Century Communities, a unit of Century Properties, is the developer of the proposed 59-hectare housing project in La Mesa dam. “That housing project will greatly affect the water source of 12 million people,” Lopez said.
Sagittarius Mines, a joint venture between Glencore and Indophil, is developing the Tampakan project, which is said to be one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper-gold deposits.
Early estimates showed the Tampakan project had a global resource of 2.94 billion tons, containing 15 million tons of copper and 17.9 million ounces of gold at a 0.2 percent copper cut-off grade.
The copper and gold mine straddles the town of Tampakan in South Cotabato and Kiblawan in Davao del Sur.
Jasareno said Tampakan’s ECC was under review.
