THE Court of Appeals (CA) has denied the bid of Marcopper Mining Corp. to stop the conduct of a full-blown trial of the civil suit filed by a group of fishermen seeking damages, in connection with the 1996 mine tailings spilled into Calancan Bay in Marinduque, which adversely affected their livelihood and resulted in sickness and death in surrounding communities.
In a five-page decision penned by Associate Justice Jose Reyes Jr., the CA’s former Fifth Division denied the motion for reconsideration filed by Marcopper of its June 29, 2015, decision affirming the order issued by the Regional Trial Court in Boac, Marinduque, Branch 38 on July 5, 2013, denying its motion to dismiss the class suit.
In its June 2015 decision, the CA rejected Marcopper’s argument that the trial court committed grave abuse of discretion in not junking the complaint filed by Calancan Bay Fisherfolk Federation, et al, based on prescription and laches or undue delay in seeking relief.
In denying Marcopper’s MR, the CA did not give credence to the mining firm’s claim the factual findings in its decision are based on unofficial and unverified reports found on the Internet, which are neither part of the record of the case nor matters of judicial notice.
The CA also dismissed Marcopper’s argument that its ruling comprised of unsubstantiated conclusion of facts and is tantamount to prejudment of the case. On the issue of the information gathered from the internet found in the background section of the decision, the CA said the only source of information was Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia built collaboratively. It said that even the Supreme Court has cited Wikipedia since 2004 in several of its rulings.
“Resort to the Internet was made to supplant the missing information that will provide a sufficient background to apprise the Court of the basis and the rewson for the tort case filed by the fishermen,” the CA said.
The CA said it had to study why the mining pit collapsed and how the villagers and the lake itself were affected, thus, the use of Internet and Wikipedia, as well as SC decisions, was needed in order for the Court to resolve the petition “in a fair and just manner.”
Marcopper earlier claimed even before 1980 and until 1986, the complainants were already aware of the discharge of the mine tailings and yet they did not take any legal action during those times.
But the CA said there was no grave abuse of discretion on the part of the trial court in denying Marcopper’s motion to dismiss the case, considering the environmental disaster caused by the leaked mine tailings.
“The effect of the pollution and damage wrought by Marcopper on Calancan Bay—the people, their livelihood and the environment—is truly immense in terms of health, quality of life and source of livelihood,” the CA said.
It noted that the complaint even included the names of the persons who died and the children who developed diseases due to the mine tailings. The complainants also claimed that based on medical reports, the nature of heavy metal poisoning is “persistent and systemic,” and will likey be transferred from the present generation to the next, particularly to the fetus of mothers with existing heavy metal burden.
It was also alleged that the mine tailings cover about 80 square kilometers of the bay, so that the only way to increase the fish catch is for the fishermen to venture into the open waters.
Records showed that Marcopper was engaged in the mining production of copper concentrates since 1968. In October 1975 Marcopper was granted a permit to operate a “Tailings Disposal Systeem” in Santa Cruz, Marinduque, by the then-National Pollution Control Commission for a submerged disposal system.
Starting 1975, Marcopper discharged mine tailings from its Mount Tapian mining operations into Calancan Bay.
The degradation of Calancan Bay spanned 16 years, from 1975 to 1991, when 80 square kilometers of coral and seagrasses at the bottom of the bay were smothered in 200 million tons of mine tailings.
The mine tailings that floated became airbone when exposed to the ocean breeze and landed on the rice fields, in open water wells and on village homes, that resulted in sickness and death in some villages.