Colet Mining Corp still in confirmatory drilling stage
The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Region 6 said that the claims of an anti-mining group about the destruction of approximately 100 hectares of fertile rice lands at Sitio Dung-I in Sipalay City by the Colet Mining Development Corporation is without basis.
According to the MGB 6, Colet Mining Development Corporation has an approved Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (MPSA) of 2,901.8040 hectares for copper and other minerals in Sipalay City. At present it is only undertaking confirmatory drillings within their MPSA area in Barangays Manlucahoc and Nabulao, Sipalay City, Neg. occidental. It has an operating agreement with Hinoba Holdings Philippines (HHPI)
As clarified by the MGB 6, Colet Mining Development Corporation has still to undergo an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the project should it decide to proceed to the next stage of its development after it has completed the exploration stage. It is at this point that all the environmental and social impacts of the project shall be assessed and mitigating measures will be identified.
The Philippine Mining Act of 1995 and its implementing rules and regulations (IRR) provide the framework for responsible mining wherein at every stage of the project, the impacts are being guarded.
MGB-6 said it has been regularly monitoring the exploration activities of Colet Mining Development Corporation (CMDC) to ensure their compliance to the Environmental Work Program.
During the commercial production or actual mining operations stage, the mining law and its IRR puts premium consideration to environmental protection. Stringent measures are institutionalized to ensure the compliance of mining contractors/operators to internationally accepted standards of environmental management the MGB clarified.
The environmental and social impacts of mining are taken into account in two major policies governing mining - the Republic Act 7942 or the Philippine Mining Act of 1995, and Presidential Decree No. 1586 or the Philippine Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) System according to MGB6.
With the revitalization and responsible mining of the country's minerals industry the government expects to generate some US$ 8 billion investments for the country and copper is among the country's major mineral reserves. Region 6 is included in the 24 major mining projects in the next five to six years because of its mineral deposits specifically in the mineral district of southwestern Negros Occidental.
(PIA6)