The MINERAL
ACTION PLAN: Sacrificing environmental regulations and social acceptability
provisions for the unhampered entry of foreign mining companies
Background and Context:
The Mineral Action Plan (MAP) is the detailed implementation plan
of EO 270 and 270-A known as the National Minerals Policy (NMP),
which was approved in January 2004 and amended in April 2004. The
MAP is the national policy agenda for the revitalization of the
Philippine mining industry. It sets the framework and principles
by which the Philippine mining industry aims to achieve what it
refers to as “sustainable and responsible mining”.
The National Mineral
Policy
The Mineral Action Plan (MAP):
The MAP, as the concrete and detailed action plan of the NMP, sets
concrete strategies with clear targets and specific activities to
address various issues and concerns in revitalizing the Philippine
mining industry. This policy agenda covers facilitation of investments;
optimizing benefits from minerals; promotion of small scale mining;
use of efficient technology, protection of the environment; multiple
land use and sustainable utilization of mineralized areas; remediation
or rehabilitation of abandoned mine-sites; economic and social benefits,
education and information drives; and consultation process on resource
management, policy and planning.
The MAP aims to bring about the integration and cohesion of different
government agencies by resolving the issues that are seen as constraints
or problem areas to greater foreign investments in the mining industry.
These constraints are mainly on environmental regulations, social
acceptability and various regulations of the concerned government
agencies. Obviously, the MAP is intended to provide for the unhampered
entry and operation of foreign mining companies which the government
considers as the most decisive and key element in revitalizing the
Philippine mining industry. The expected massive foreign investment
to the mining industry is considered by the government as one of
the key solutions to the worsening financial crisis. Based on the
MAP, the government is even willing to bend its own rules, regulations
and laws on the protection of the environment, the recognition of
the rights of affected communities and the autonomy of local government
units just to be able to satisfy the demands of foreign mining companies
and ensure their profitability. On the other hand, the serious environmental
and social cost and consequences of large scale mining are merely
treated with more rhetoric rather than decisive actions. National
patrimony, ecological protection and social concerns are clearly
sacrificed in the drive to revitalize the mining industry, with
all incentives given to foreign investors under the NMP and MAP.
Addressing the legal constraints:
Time and again, the mining industry has been very vocal in their
disappointment over the tedious and long process of acquiring exploration
and related permits and agreements, which are requirements for mining
exploration and eventual operation. These legal requirements are
on environmental protection, social acceptability, protection of
biodiversity, and the regulation on foreign investment. However,
instead of strengthening these positive provisions of the law to
protect the public interest and welfare, the solution provided by
MAP is to simplify the procedures and harmonize provisions of laws
affecting mining, in order to facilitate greater investment in the
mining industry by local and foreign companies. In particular, the
Department of Justice will be asked to intervene in favor of the
mining industry over the conflicting provisions of the Mining Act,
the Local Government Code, IPRA, NIPAS, Omnibus Investment Code,
among others.
In addition, the MAP provides for shortcuts to legal protective
measures in order to satisfy the demands and interest of the mining
industry. In particular, 15 regional one stop-shops for processing
of mining applications have already been set up, instead of the
regular procedure whereby the various government agencies have to
do careful studies of each mining application. This short cut process
becomes a mechanical procedure, vulnerable to a lot of oversight
on various regulations, potential violations of certain laws and
guidelines, as well as potential adverse impacts of the mining operation.
In particular, one shortcut process is the reduction of the period
allowed for the processing of the requirement for the Free Prior
and Informed Consent (FPIC) of affected indigenous communities.
As per agreement made between the National Commission of Indigenous
Peoples (NCIP) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR), the 185 days required for the FPIC process has been reduced
to 107 days or by 43%. This legal provision under the Indigenous
Peoples Rights Act (IPRA) is a mechanism to ensure that indigenous
peoples rights are not violated, especially on their control, management
and utilization of their resources as part of their inherent and
collective rights. But under the MAP, this is now being reduced
to a mere technical and procedural requirement, making a mockery
of the very principle of the right to self- determination of indigenous
peoples. In order to uphold the very principles of FPIC, there should
be clearer guidelines to ensure that adequate information is provided,
including terms of contract and agreements, potential adverse impacts,
independent environmental and social studies, and access to related
information. Sufficient time should also be allowed for information
dissemination, transparent consultations, independent collective
discussions and independent decision making , meaning there should
be no manipulation, coercion, bribery and similar cases just to
obtain a favorable endorsement for the mining projects. The FPIC
mechanism is a matter of social justice for indigenous peoples who
have often been made sacrificial lambs in the name of development.
The provision for FPIC, however, is seen by mining companies as
an obstacle to their interest in exploiting the people’s resources
for profit. Through the MAP, the government is simply following
the dictates of mining companies by further watering down the already
problematic NCIP guidelines for the implementation of the FPIC.
Another appalling legal shortcut is on the requirement for positive
endorsement by affected local government units as required under
the Local Government Code for any project affecting their constituents.
Instead of requiring official resolutions of the local legislative
units such as the Sanggunian Bayan and Provincial Board, the MAP
states that a certification of consultation with a designated local
government official will suffice as a requirement for the issuance
of exploration permits. This is again another affront to the exercise
of local autonomy by local government units, and a usurpation of
the responsibilities of local government units to conduct public
consultations as a basis for any decision on projects affecting
their constituents. Adding insult to injury, the DENR under MAP
will seek the intervention of the Department of Justice (DOJ) regarding
resolutions made by local government units declaring moratorium
on mining. These resolutions serve as examples of good public accountability
of the concerned local government units for upholding the position
of their constituencies.
Addressing public concern on the adverse environmental and ecological
impacts of mining:
While the MAP contains several measures and guidelines on environmental
protection, it fails to provide decisive action on how to resolve
existing serious environmental problems in relation to mining. For
one, instead of requiring a mandatory third party audit of mining
companies with regards to their mining operation, MAP merely encourages
this kind of environmental accountability measure. From experience,
given the environmental disasters caused by mining operations, mining
companies are not very receptive to a third party audit because
it opens up their operation to independent scrutiny. Likewise, MAP
merely provides incentives for good environmental conduct of mining
companies, but does not provide strong penalties and sanctions for
serious environmental and ecological disasters caused by mining
operations. In fact, more than 10 mine tailings dams have collapsed
in the Philippines, yet not a single mining company in the Philippines
has been given stiff penalties or sanction for this kind of disaster,
which has serious consequences not only on the environment but on
the people’s livelihoods. It should be noted that large scale
mining operations, even with the use of highly sophisticated technology,
still cannot reverse the inherent environmental damages caused by
mining operations such as toxic mine waste disposal, pollution from
milling operations and geological disasters.
Another area of mere lip service is on the protection of biodiversity-rich
areas with mineral deposits. While MAP states its objective of protecting
bio-diversity areas, this, however, is subject to valuation study
and comprehensive land use plan. Given the practice of the government
of giving premium to the commercial value of land and resource utilization,
extraction of minerals is expected to be given higher priority over
the protection of the ecological system. Thus, the most likely outcome
and direction of the action plan of MAP is to enhance the NIPAS
and mining laws towards strengthening land use for mining, rather
than for biodiversity protection.
Instead of clear and decisive policy guidelines and concrete actions
to address public concerns on the environmental consequences of
mining, MAP instead provides a detailed action plan for education
and information to promote mining as sustainable and beneficial
for the development of the country. It drumbeats the so-called economic
benefits of mining and the benefits for host communities in order
to entice the public’s support. But this strategy is doomed
to fail as the existing environmental mess caused by past mining
operations remains unattended to and serves as a glaring example
of the insincerity of the government and mining companies to resolve
these inherent problems of mining. Actions speak louder than words
on this matter.
The rhetoric of support for small-scale mining:
Surprisingly, the MAP has one section devoted to the government’s
support and promotion of small scale mining. In fact, it even includes
the identification of small-scale mining areas. However, the small-scale
mining sector is already governed by the Small Scale Mining Act,
which a lot of gold panners have rejected. What can be gleaned from
this strategy is the overriding interest of the government to generate
revenue from small scale miners as they continue to grow in numbers,
and to regulate their activities, so that rich mineral deposits
will be mainly for large-scale corporate mining.
Conclusion
The MAP is brazenly designed to further weaken any remaining protective
measures that regulate the mining industry leading to the complete
sell- out of the people’s mineral resources to large-scale
corporate mining. It clearly follows the dictates and whims of mining
companies and foreign investors to the detriment of the people’s
livelihood sources, national patrimony and environment. The NMP
and MAP pretend to be for environmental protection, yet do not provide
for a strict regulatory regime for mining corporations, in spite
of their appalling record of ecological disasters. Because of the
government’s favoring of mining companies over the rights
and welfare of the people, this is another form of national oppression
of indigenous peoples and an imperialist imposition to further exploit
and control the nation’s mineral wealth. It can be expected
that more conflicts will take place in mining-affected communities
with the onslaught of foreign mining companies fully supported by
the State and its machineries. The people must then brace themselves
and strengthen their ranks to defend their rights and secure the
people’s resources. It is with the people’s vigilance,
collective and sustained actions using various legitimate forms
of struggle and defense, and with the support of the broad public,
that we can prevent this aggressive plan to further marginalize
the already impoverished people of the countryside. #
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