A village council in Nueva Vizcaya province is opposing the proposed mining exploration by a subsidiary of Britain’s Metals Exploration Plc, citing threats to the community’s environment and livelihood.
The council of Oyao, a farming village in Dupax del Norte, refused to issue a “certificate of consultation” to Woogle Corp., a local affiliate of Metals Exploration PLC and a unit of FCF Minerals Corp.
“We oppose only those activities that exploit and destroy, those that compromise our environment, health, culture and livelihood,” the council said in a statement.
“We…unanimously and firmly declare our opposition to any form of mining exploration or mining activities within the territorial jurisdiction of Barangay Oyao,” the statement read.
The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) granted Metals Exploration an exploration license on Aug. 7 for a 3,100-hectare area in Dupax del Norte, targeting gold and copper deposits. The company plans to use its existing ore processing plant in nearby Runruno to handle any ore extracted.
Woogle Corp. had requested a certificate of consultation from the Oyao council, a requirement for its exploration permit.
The village council, in an Aug. 25 letter to Woogle Corp. president Lorne Harvey, denied the request, saying no genuine consultation had been conducted.
Oyao village chairman Junior Taligan said the meeting held on Aug. 15 was only an “information and education campaign” and not a valid public consultation.
“A valid public consultation requires the presence and active participation of barangay officials, community members… and all stakeholders where the voices, concerns and opposition of the people are openly heard and documented,” the council said in the statement.
Nueva Vizcaya is home to two large-scale mining projects of OceanaGold Corp. in Didipio and FCF Minerals in Runruno.
Darren Bowden, Metals Exploration’s chief executive, previously said the company was confident in the new exploration project.
“We have a great opportunity to quickly unlock value from the Dupax del Norte project and hopefully extend the ore processing operations at Runruno,” he said.
