Mining decisions

[Dave Hounddriver]

19 minutes ago, mogo51 said:

Seems I have opened a 'can of worms'

That's a profession here!  I have seen ladies going through trash piles collecting cans full of worms that they sell to certain fish farms as feed.  I asked and it seems they were getting almost 100 pesos for a can of worms.  I guess that could be called "worm mining"

[Reboot]

33 minutes ago, mogo51 said:

Thank you Reboot.  But the silly part of the decision by Philippines to claw back mining is that they have just transferred the money from Philippines to Indonesia who has just re opened their mines the closed on 'environmental reasons'.  The loss of income was massive.

The answer is to ensure safe mining practices and oversee that those measures are being kept up to date.  Then it is a win/win.

I am sure the poor bastards who are struggling from day to day to keep a roof over their head and food in their and childrens' mouths could be well use it.

I also agree with you about tourism in Philippines.  My SO and I did a trip up and down Luzon a couple of years ago and the potential is unbelievable but the infra structure is lagging so far behind.  Philippines needs to get its hands on as much capital that it can to break the 'poverty shackles'

I like win/win. I agree it could be possibly done that way. But it hasn't. Apparently it has been a travesty and a study in corruption where politicians have been bought to enable rapine. So it's good it has been stopped for now I think. A shame about Indonesia. I hope it's been done properly. The valuable Filipino deposits, by the way, aren't going anywhere. They are still there in the ground to be extracted with proper respect to the rights of all the people affected and involved.

[canadamale]

There is a Canadian mining company (B2Gold). they operate Masbate Mine, They are one of the few not shut down by Duterte.. Hopefully they can continue to mine responsibly.

[jpbago]

1 hour ago, mogo51 said:

 Philippines needs to get its hands on as much capital that it can to break the 'poverty shackles'

The money is here, it just goes to the wrong hands. In today's Panay News, 8  + 3 gov officials were dismissed for grave misconduct in the purchase of office furniture in Bacolod, in Sun Star Cebu, arrest warrants are out for 10 gov officials including the ex mayor for graft in the purchase of construction materials.

[Gator]

1 hour ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

 I guess that could be called "worm mining"

They do a lot of "worm mining" in Angeles too, or so I've heard. Ahem, Cough, cough. Oh wait, different kind of worm they fish for there, lol. 

[mogo51]

These observations about corruption are correct of course.  But given the new 'anti corruption policy' why should it not be directed towards getting these mines to comply environmentally and supervised so they continue to do so? 

The needy and poor are 'needy and poor now' leaving it in the ground does not help them.

A gold mine operated by Australian company was closed down by Thai Government and they thought they would just walk away, but they 'repatriated' the landscape, took all the equipment - that stuffed the Thais!  That mine employed over 200 people, I wonder if they are happy with the gold being left 'in the ground'?  Same will apply in Philippines.

 

Edited February 8, 2017 by mogo51

[robert k]

15 hours ago, Reboot said:

In parts of Mindanao, they are stripping the mountains clean. Really tearing the place apart. While it creates some temporary jobs on the one hand, the runoff trashes the coast and kills off the marine life--marine life people are dependent on for their daily food. So that's a bunch of other jobs that go up in smoke...never mind the subsistence fishermen who merely want to eat. Furthermore, many of these mines are illegal to begin with. 

The Filipinos don't need to wreck their country to develop. Costa Rica didn't.

Exactly! Illegal mining obeys zero regulations because if they obeyed laws they wouldn't be there to begin with. You can't hide a mine. The people who are supposed to stop them from mining are supposed to stop them when their illegal mining is causing illegal pollution? 

[Reboot]

Gina's got a fever and the only prescription is more shutdowns.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/869954/gina-lopez-says-she-was-offered-p6m-a-month-bribe-by-mining-firm

 

 

 

[sonjack2847]

Just read this from AFP news.

The Philippines will review an order to close two dozen mines, the government said Friday, after the decision sparked concern over jobs losses and the economy.

The environment ministry last week ordered the closure of 23 of the country's large-scale mines and the suspension of five others after a government investigation found they had illegally cut down trees and polluted rivers.

The Philippines is the world's top supplier of nickel ore and the main exporter to China. The closure order caused a rise in global nickel prices and a decline in local mining shares.

A council headed by the environment and finance ministers met on Thursday and said it would create a "multi-stakeholder review" of the order.

"(The council shall) advise the (environment ministry) on the performance of existing mining operations in consultation with local government units," a resolution issued by the council stated.

The closures and suspensions were the result of a government audit started last year after President Rodrigo Duterte assumed office and appointed a staunch mining critic, Gina Lopez, as environment secretary.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez had expressed concern about the effect of Lopez's order on local government tax revenues and the 1.2 million people the mining industry said it employs.

The order would cost local government units 650 million pesos ($13 million) in annual revenues, according to the finance ministry.

But Lopez insisted on Friday the council's review would just be "recommendatory" and insisted she would not reverse her decision.

She added the review was meant "to appease the miners".

"I still make the decisions and my decision is no mining in watersheds. I don't see that as changing because water is life," Lopez told ABS-CBN television.

Lopez however said her order could be appealed before Duterte and would only be enforced once he made a decision.

Duterte, who enjoys wide popular support, said last week that he backed Lopez's directive.

[Dave Hounddriver]

10 minutes ago, sonjack2847 said:

The Philippines is the world's top supplier of nickel ore and the main expo

Back before environmental standards were the order of the day, Sudbury Canada may have held that position.  That was until the surrounding area started to look like a planet devoid of life

I can surely understand why the department of environment would think its not worth the environment and the worker's health for any amount of money.  I am not a "tree hugger" but I am a firm believer that there is no way in he!! that the Philippines would take the expensive but necessary precautions to make sure their nickel mines do not turn into another Sudbury.