3 MIN READ

By ALDWIN QUITASOL
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — Indigenous peoples and peasants warned that a Yolanda-like tragedy is likely to happen to any parts of North Luzon as greed for profits is still prioritized by government officials and agencies instead of heeding the cry of the people to save the environment from destructive mining operations.

Around 150 peasant, fisher folk from Ilocos and Cagayan regions as well as indigenous peoples of the Cordillera trooped to the regional office of the Mines and Geo sciences Bureau (MGB) Cordillera to demand the cancellation of the mining permits of big foreign mining companies and the stoppage of the processing of applications by the said government agency. They also condemned the continuous harassment and other kinds of persecution brought on them by state forces especially in areas where there is strong opposition to the many mining applications and operations.

They staged a program in front of the MGB office days before the opening of the 60th annual National Mine Safety and Environment Conference (ANMSEC) of the Philippine Mine Safety and Environment Association (PMSEA). The conference is also hosted by the MGB. It will be attended by mining companies, cement suppliers, mining investors and representatives of government agencies.

Ramon Gallo of Save the Valley, Save the People in Cagayan Valley said since mining companies started to operate in their region, they saw the death of their water systems and the destruction of their natural resources. He said that the water source going down to the Didipio River is now considered dead as it was polluted by mine wastes. He said that at present, the region especially in Nueva Viscaya, that is being mined by big mining companies of Oceana Gold, Royalco, Melex, Woogle, FCF and Titan.

Gallo said that the mountains in their area were already scraped of their natural cover making them vulnerable to slides and possible flooding to their surrounding low areas. He added that most of the methods used by these mining companies are open cut or open pit mining. He said trees were cut down and mountains were literally flattened.

He said they fear that when strong typhoon comes, there will be massive flooding and destruction of lives and properties. He added that it may be luck as the monster typhoon “Yolanda” that brought unimaginable devastation to the Visayas did not hit Luzon especially the areas were the environment was already destroyed by years of mining.

Ariel Madriaga of the Danggayan dagiti Mannalon iti Cagayan Valley (Dagami) said that because of the dredging and black sand mining activities of foreign mining companies at the Tuguegarao River and the coastal areas of Aparri, Buguey, Gonzaga and Pamplona, their houses and their rice fields were destroyed by the waters coming from the river and the sea. He said that there are even barrios that were already submerged because of the rising of waters as there are already no natural blockades to prevent flooding.

Madriaga also said that whether there is a typhoon or not, their rice fields including their houses are being washed-out whenever high tide comes. He said there will be worse scenarios if weather disturbances will hit their area.

Cordillera Peoples Alliance (CPA) Deputy Secretary General Santos Mero said that what the people need is the scrapping of the Philippine Mining Act of 1995 which gives more freedom to big foreign mining companies to exploit the country’s environment leaving the people with nothing but mined-out lands vulnerable to greater destruction when calamities come. He said the best way still is the passage of Peoples Mining Bill where the protection of the environment, the rights of the people to their ancestral lands and domains will be respected among others. # nordis.net