Angelica Pago
The executive order states that while existing mining operations will be allowed to
continue, the government will be suspending the granting of new mineral
agreements until existing mining laws are amended.
BAN Toxics! is an independent
non-government environmental organization focused on the advancement of
environmental justice, children's health, and toxics elimination. Working
closely with government agencies, partner communities and other NGOs in both
the local and international levels, BAN Toxics endeavors to reduce
and eliminate the use of harmful toxins through education campaigns, training
and awareness-raising, and policy-building and advocacy programs.
(63)
915-9260371/angelica@bantoxics.org
QUEZON CITY - Small-scale miners from the province
of Kalinga voiced out their apprehension over some sections of Executive Order
79.
Over a hundred small-scale miners who participated on
the first day of the Kalinga Provincial Summit on Artisanal and Small-scale
Gold Mining on June 3, 2013 expressed their concern as they feel ‘left-out’ in
the new Executive Order.
EO 79 was signed last year by President Benigno Aquino
III aiming to rationalize and strengthen the mining sector in the country.
“But we feel left out, it’s as though we were
abandoned to fend for ourselves. We don’t want to be considered illegal
forever,” one miner said.
Except for two
special permits, which expired on August 2012, no permits have been issued for
small scale mining in Kalinga. There were pending applications for small-scale
mining permits but processing was discontinued because of the moratorium on the
issuance of ECCs and permits, as indicated in the executive order.
There is a large
number of small-scale mining operations in the province of Kalinga particularly
in Pasil and Balbalan. Small scale mining is a source of living for
approximately 5000 miners in the area. Although considered illegal, small scale
mining operations continue to thrive and there were no attempts by the authorities
to stop small scale mining activities.
ASGM summits are one of the activities conducted by
BAN Toxics to capacitate small-scale miners in pursuing mercury-free and responsible
small-scale mining in the Philippines. The summit also gathers representatives
from the national government, concerned agencies, and small scale miners and
workers to bring out issues and concerns on the small-scale mining sector.
The Kalinga ASGM Summit is made possible through the support of the
United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Dialogos, Global
Environmental Fund, University of Copenhagen, Geological Survey of
Denmark and Greenland (GEUS), and the International Center for Occupational,
Environment, and Public Health (ICOEPH) in partnership with the
provincial government of Kalinga, Department of Health (DOH), and the
Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
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