AN initial review of 27 mining operations in the country has ended, with four companies getting a failing grade as far as meeting certain aspects of the assessment is concerned, the Mining Industry Coordination Council (MICC) has reported.
Finance Undersecretary Bayani H. Agabin who represents the Department of Finance (DOF) during MICC meetings, said that based on preliminary findings from its review of the technical, social, environmental, and legal aspects, four mining firms scored below criteria.
“Four [mines] failed out of 27…what is interesting are the policy recommendations we can cull out of the reports…They tried to summarize the findings per mine, and there are common issues and so that now can fit in the policy recommendations,” Agabin said.
He explained that the economic aspect of the review remains to be done, since the social and legal aspects were tackled ahead, being a prerequisite for the specific aspect.
Once the review on the economic aspect of the mining sites is completed, the scores of the mining operations can still change.
“There were five aspects they looked at, they posted certain criteria, and then based on that, they assessed each mine in connection with the criteria and the benchmarks. And then the system was such that three is the highest score acceptable, two is minor reforms needed, one is major reforms, and zero is unacceptable,” he added.
Of the four mining companies that failed the first round, three are into nickel and one, chromite.
“We are not recommending closure, we just assessed based on certain benchmarks…That decision is up to the DENR [Department of Environment and Natural Resources] and the OP [Office of the President],” he said.
Agabin said that the MICC will meet again on the fourth week of July for the assessment of the final review of the mining sites.
“The general timeframe is that the MICC will schedule a meeting by the fourth week of July,” he added.
For the review of the economic aspect, a household survey will be implemented along with a cost benefit analysis. The review of the economic aspect was delayed since inputs from the social and legal aspects are needed.
“The team needs one or two weeks to complete the economic aspect of the review and they need to do a cost-benefit analysis…it’s expected to come in within a week or two,” he said.
In March this year, the MICC started its review of the mining sites ordered closed or suspended by former Environment Secretary Regina Paz L. Lopez, with the first phase of the review covering legal, technical and environmental concerns, and targeted for completion within a three-month period.