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No 'midnight deals' in
Samar mining project
Former Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR) Secretary Heherson T. Alvarez today strongly
denied allegations by the Catholic Bishops Conference
of the Philippines (CBCP) and officials of Samar
Island that the two Mineral Production Sharing Agreements
(MPSAs) he signed last year for mining explorations
in the island were tinged with anomalies.
In a press conference on Thursday, the CBCP led
by Borongan, Eastern Samar Bishop Leonardo Medroso
and local officials of Samar Island led by Calbiga
Mayor Melchor Nacario, charged that the two MPSAs
for Bauxite Resources Inc. and Alumina Mining Corp.
were "midnight deals" in nature, saying
these were signed on December 4 last year, shortly
before Alvarez was replaced as DENR Secretary on
Dec. 15, 2002.
They also claim that the mining areas were within
a forest reserve declared by the Ramos administration
and also covers 119,197 hectares of the proposed
Samar Island National Park (SINP) in Western Samar.
Alvarez, who is now presidential adviser on filipino
overseas workers, maintained that there was no 'midnight
deals' for the two MPSAs which he said were approved
following all procedures in accordance with the
rule of law.
"The MPSAs cover only the exploration activities
to be conducted by the two mining companies and
do not grant them the right to mine. These MPSAs,
along with several others that I have approved during
my DENR watch of two years was a component of the
government's thrust for sustainable minerals development,
with the vision of infusing more investments in
that sector, accelerate more jobs in the countryside
and fast track development," he stressed.
Alvarez said project proposals for mining in Samar
Island have been pending since the 1970s and 1980s.
The MPSAs, he clarified, went though a rigorous
process based on Presidential Proclamation No. 1690
issued in 1977 by President Marcos, establishing
the Bauxite Mineral Reservation, which has yet to
be repealed, and was issued prior to the Samar Forest
Reserve declaration by President Ramos in 1996.
The Bauxite Mining Reservation is estimated to hold
more than 200 million metric tons of bauxite, a
strategic raw material for aluminum production.
This is the only bauxite mine in the country and
if fully developed, this would generate at least
US$21 billion in revenues, which would make a substantial
contribution towards government's anti-poverty program.
"It may also be recalled that when President
Arroyo announced my replacement in November, she
even gave me ample time to finish many programs
and projects pending in my Department then, including
the MPSAs. We have done our job, all above board,
before I relinquished my post on December 15, as
ordered by the President," Alvarez added.
For his part, DENR Mines and Geosciences Bureau
(MGB) Director Horacio C. Ramos, in a letter to
the Philippine Daily Inquirer, maintained that the
MPSAs underwent all the prescribed procedures and
processes in securing mining rights in mineral reservations.
He also denied that the MPSAs were already "mining
rights" in itself but were mere "exploration
permits" with the actual mining process - its
scope, framework and extent - still to be determined
through another rigorous process involving all stakeholders,
before actual mining would be done.
"It is not true that bauxite will be mined
in a 12,000-hectare area that encroaches upon a
forest reservation. The MPSAs are intended for initial
mineral exploration only… If a sizeable economic
mineral deposit is discovered, the proposed project
will still have to pass through the entire Environmental
Impact Assessment process leading to an Environmental
Compliance Certificate (ECC)," he said.
Also, Ramos said project proponents would need to
submit an Environmental Protection and Enhancement
Program, as well as secure an approval from the
Sangguniang Panlalawigan, Sangguniang Bayan and
the Barangay Council, including a feasibility study
to determine whether or not the project can absorb
the environmental and social costs.
Ramos reiterated that all MPSAs approved by government
automatically excludes any virgin forests and watershed
forest reservations because there are areas are
closed to any form of mining.
Even DENR Secretary Elisea Gozun has been quoted
as saying that the MPSAs have already been found
valid by the DENR 's legal division which reviewed
the agreements upon her orders.
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