Applause for Gina Lopez

When the big miners expressed confidence that it would be easy for them to meet the conditions given by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for them to avoid getting padlocked, the soundness
of Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez’s mining audit was proven on many fronts.

First, it showed that Lopez’s demands for “responsible mining” were reasonable after all. According to Ronald Recidoro, vice president for Legal and Policy of the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP), the one-page letters from the environment department to members detailing grounds for suspension often listed administrative matters, ranging from “small violations” of the mining act to insufficient tree-planting.

With this, OceanaGold President and CEO Mick Wilkes said: “I am highly confident that our Didipio operations will continue to operate without interruption.” Nickel Asia President Gerard Brimo commented: “We remain confident that Hinatuan Mining Corp.’s operation will not be suspended.” Now, perhaps using the principle of estoppel, the miners can no longer challenge Lopez’s mining audit.

Second, these statements from the miners also proved that Lopez is not just out to stop all mining operations in the country—just the unscrupulous ones. So mining investors—if they really do not have foul intentions—have no reason to fear the country’s top environment protector.

This is much just like President Duterte’s “Oplan Tokhang,” or even the now household initials EJK (extra-judicial killings). Law-abiding citizens that have no connection whatsoever with the illegal-drugs trade will not fear getting “slaughtered” by Mr. Duterte’s alleged “death squad”.

Related to this is the next important point in Lopez’s campaign—the mining industry really needs to be purged of bad eggs, not by guns, but by a mining audit with stringent criteria. The COMP has been saying the operations of its members have complied with international certification standards; yet, about three-quarters of the mining sites fell short in the audit, with 20 mines facing suspension on top of the 10 already halted.

Fourth, and again related to this, Lopez was proven right in saying there should be a better way of gauging the operations of miners, probably through the TEV, or the total economic valuation, scheme. “We will monetize the benefits from mining.  Then we will monetize the destruction…land, water, [impact to] health,” Lopez said. “If the cost outweighs the benefits, it follows that the project should be scrapped.”

Of course, miners would say this is another form of changing the rules in the middle of the game. But again, if you’re above-board on all fronts, why fear scrutiny in whatever manner.

Indeed, mining is not just about money, taxes, revenues, exports, salaries and progress. More important, it’s about the lives of people in the host communities and the next generation of Filipinos that would inherit what would be left of the mined-out areas. For ensuring this does not escape the consciousness of all stakeholders, Lopez deserves a round of applause.

source:  Business Mirror