AMB to scrap Mining Act of 1995

Mark S. Ventura
CBCP News


DAVAO CITY, May 19, 2009—The Legal Rights and Natural Resources Centre –Kasama sa Kalikasan –Friends of the Earth Philippines (LRC/KsK-FoE Phils) said that there is a need for the passage of alternative mining bill (AMB) into law since this will address the criticisms and problems of the Mining Act of 1995 and other mineral policies in the country.

Erwin B. Quinones, campaigns paralegal of LRC/KsK-FoE –Phils said that the old law on mining is inherently flawed and problems cannot be solved by the same defective legislation.

Under the proposed AMB, Quinones said, the old law will be scrapped and a new mining policy is to be intro-duced that will now regulate the rational exploration, development and utilization of mineral resources and en-sure the equitable sharing of benefits for State, indigenous peoples and local communities and for other pur-poses.

Quinones said that in AMB there is now a greater participation of the Filipino people in mining and rights of the indigenous peoples are also respected.

The proposed AMB, he continued will also afford equitable sharing of benefits as compared to the old law. Un-der the proposed bill, the government will receive 10% of gross revenues apart from taxes to be paid by con-tractors, local government units are also entitled to share of the net revenues from the mining operations paid directly to the provincial treasurer, taking into consideration classification of local government and at least 10% of gross revenues as royalty to the indigenous peoples similar to government share.

Quinones added that AMB also seeks the removal of financial or technical assessment agreement (FTAA) which allows 100% foreign land ownership and give a mandate that it will only allow Filipino individuals or corpora-tions.

“Only Filipino citizen/s or corporation/s 60% of whose equity is owned or controlled by Filipino is allowed to mine, to conduct development, utilization and processing of mineral resources in the Philippines. The AMB will also remove the confidentiality provision under the Mining Act. Mandating transparency and access to informa-tion for the public,” Quinones told CBCPNews in an interview.

“AMB will also prohibit the transfer and assignments of agreements to prevent corporations avoiding their obli-gations to the state and to the communities. It will also decrease the maximum areas and terms for mining con-tractors compared to the Mining Act,” he added.

The maximum contract area for mining operations shall be limited to five hundred hectares (500 has) and the maximum area for one person in any place in the country shall be 750 has in any given watershed (prohibition shall also apply to corporations having the same directors or corporate officers). The maximum term is fifteen (15) years (already includes the five (5) years for rehabilitation,” said Quinones.

The proposed law will also introduce the Environmental and Social Impact Prevention and Mitigation Plan (ESIPMP) in place of the Environmental Impact Assessment to comprehensively assess the economic, socio-cultural and environmental impact of mining.

NEW COUNCIL WILL BE FORMED

If AMB will be passed into law then a Mineral Multi-Sectoral Council (MMSC) will be formed and is to be com-posed of representatives of national government, representatives from the affected local government units, non-government organizations, and the local indigenous communities.

Quinones explained that the council will represent the state and communities on exploration, development and utilization matters, decides whether or not to open the area for mining, decides whether or not to approve min-ing operations and approves permit for mineral processing.

Under the AMB, the government will act as a regulator rather than a promoter and it will also transfer the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) from the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources (DENR) to Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

“The MGB now will become a scientific research institution under the DOST and has no political decision-making authority to determine who will mine,” said Quinones.

AMB covers ownership management and governance of ore minerals onshore, as well as quarry resources, sand and gravel, guano, and gemstones, excluding offshore mining and other resources such as petroleum and coal natural gas, radioactive materials, and geothermal energy, as there are resources which require specific law.

AMB also takes into consideration the decades-long issues, experiences and analyses of different individuals, organizations, and communities affected by mining in the Philippines.

Moreover, the AMB aims to articulate the basic agreements during the Dapitan Initiative—a mass-based movement formed in 2002 to counter act the government’s creeping aggressive promotion of large–scale min-ing operations in the country.