By Angelica Pago
(63) 915-9260371/angelica@ bantoxics.org
While the small scale miners promised to do their part in policing their own sector, they expressed their apprehension over some sections of the executive order.
(63) 915-9260371/angelica@
QUEZON CITY - In time with the celebration
of the World Environment Day, small-scale miners promise to ‘regulate their
own’ to protect the environment of Kalinga and to uplift the standards for small-scale
mining in the province.
This was expressed in a
declaration signed by all participating small-scale miners, tribal leaders,
representatives of local government units and agencies on the last day of the Kalinga
Provincial Summit on Artisanal and Small Scale Mining held in Tabuk City,
Kalinga.
“Uphold
the protection of our environment and the health of our people in the pursuit
of development as defined by, and truly beneficial to, the people of Kalinga,”
the declaration said.
While promising to protect the environment of Kalinga, and
affirmed their commitment to eliminating the use of mercury in all mining
activities in the province. The province of Kalinga has earlier banned the use
of mercury in all small scale mining activities within its jurisdiction.
The miners all agreed to submit to
‘self-regulation’
in the area of small-scale mining to meet the best standards for the sector by
taking steps in following certain provisions in Executive Order 79,
particularly the provision that bans the use of mercury in small scale mining.
While the small scale miners promised to do their part in policing their own sector, they expressed their apprehension over some sections of the executive order.
EO 79 was signed last year by
President Benigno Aquino III aiming to rationalize and strengthen the mining
sector in the country.
“EO 79 undermines all existing and future opportunities for
the artisanal and small scale gold miners and for local government units to
move towards progress,” the declaration said.
“It makes it unreasonably difficult for the legitimization of
artisanal and small scale mining and the establishment of minahang bayan in
some areas and effectively removes this opportunity in other areas.”
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.
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 push for the eradication of the use of
mercury in small-scale mining by capacitating small scale miners in the
countryside. 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).
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.
Declaration
of
Kalinga Artisanal and Small-scale Miners, LGU representatives and Stakeholders conceived during the Kalinga Provincial Summit on Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining
Kalinga Artisanal and Small-scale Miners, LGU representatives and Stakeholders conceived during the Kalinga Provincial Summit on Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining
3-4
June 2013, Golden Berries Hotel and Convention Center, Tabuk City, Kalinga
We the undersigned artisanal and
small scale gold miners (ASGM), representatives of thelocal government units of
Balbalan, Pasil, and the provincial government of Kalinga, ASGM community
members, concerned individuals and stakeholders:
AFFIRM, the positive contributions of
the ASGM sector in terms of livelihood and local community development
especially in rural areas of the province;
AWARE, of the mounting pressures on
the ASGM sector to improve our environmental and social performance, which includes
the elimination of mercury use;
BELIEVE, the importance of
development at the community level as the engine that will lead to genuine
economic development for the country; and
AFFIRM, the need for active dialogue
and cooperation among ASGM miners and communities with local government units
as a critical cog in local development and peace.
As
we conclude our two-day provincial summit, we collectively raise to the
national government the following pressing issues that impact the LGUs of
Kalinga, its communities and small-scale miners:
-
EO
79 undermines all existing and future opportunities for the artisanal and small
scale gold miners and for local government units to move towards progress. It makes
it unreasonably difficult for thelegitimization of artisanal and small scale
mining and the establishmentof minahangbayan in some areas and effectively removes this opportunity in
other areas
-
We
are also critical of the DENR’s policy of area status clearance as it favors large
scale mining.
-
We
question the legitimacy of the Philippine Mining Development Corporation’s
claim over the defunct BatongBuhay Gold Mines, Inc. as it affects small scale
minerscurrently operating in the area
-
We
urge relevant authorities to resolve the false claim by PMDC over BatongBuhay
and institute a fair, independent, unbiased, transparent, and participatory
process that once and for all amicably resolve this lingering stalemate over
Batong-Buhay.
-
We
believe that any meaningful progress to rural development means the immediate amendment
of EO 79 to one that follows a rationalframework that is democratically
formulated with thegenuine and effective participation of the local government
units, miners and stakeholders of Kalinga and other mining locales.
For
our part, we,thesmall-scale miners,representatives of the LGUs and the
stakeholders of Kalinga commit to:
-
Uphold
the protection of our environment and the health of our people in the pursuit of
development as defined by, and truly beneficial to, the people of Kalinga.
-
Continue
our drive to eliminate the use of mercury in all mining activities in the
province
-
Strengthen
our efforts at self-regulation in the area of small-scale mining to meet the
best standards for the sector;
-
Engage the national government to advance and elevate the
small-scale mining profession and interests;
-
Build local economies, especially in poor and
depressed areas, that will lead towards real and community-driven development
in our province;
-
Encourage our small-scale miners to comply and
honor their obligation under RA 7076 to sell their produce to the
BangkoSentralngPilipinasor their authorized buyers.
Lastly,
we recognize and express our profound gratitude to the effort of the BAN
Toxics!.
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