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nine DENR secretaries, starting with Vic Ramos to Eleazar Quinto. Every time a new Secretary comes in, he does not want to use the policy of the previous, they have their own management styles, they have their own idea of how things should be done. But in my case, I considered myself as just a transition Secretary. I have no illusions of doing this and doing that. I simply reviewed and approved policies presented to me after consultations with the staff. I said they are the work of all the Secretaries. I did not claim them as mine, its theirs, its DENR’s. Maybe that’s the best thing about being a career employee. What was accomplished? For mining, it’s the revitalization program for the Philippine mining industry and having in place a system that would have an equitable sharing of benefits from mining - not only for government but also for the local community and indigenous people. During my watch we did not approve any mining tenement without a free and prior informed consent by the indigenous people in the area as certified to by the National Commission Indigenous People (NCIP). For the first time the IPs are sharing benefits through royalties from mining operations. We have also put in place a comprehensive life of the mine environmental protection from exploration to mining operations to post mine closure and insuring funds implementations. The National Geohazard Mapping Program which was initiated by the former Administration and now of great relevance to the Government and local government units as well as other users, was started during my term as MGB Director. Sadly, it took several natural calamities before
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LGUs and the people took notice. We also implemented the titling of residential lands under the patent system. That’s a major one, kasi pag nag-issue ka ng land patent, it’s for agriculture. And then sa residential, you go into a process na marami. Dito ngayon, if you can title the agriculture land under the patent system, you can also title for residential system. In forestry we came up with a stricter environmental plan for social protection. I applied what we did in mining to forestry since there is nothing like that and we made it mandatory. Portal: What else is needed to continue the revitalization of the mining industry that you started in 2004? Ramos: To me, it’s the implementation of the program. It’s important to show that the country benefits from mining. An issue being raised right now is that the economic benefit derived from mining is just small. It’s not because the mining companies are not giving enough money but it’s because one agency is trying to collect taxes and the other agency wants to give incentives. If there’s a new mining project, we give income tax holidays at the BOI, then there is also PEZA. This has to be stopped. If mining is profitable, there’s no need for incentives. The minerals themselves are the incentives. We are among the few countries in the world who gives tax holidays on natural resources projects. It may be okay for a computer chips company but when you extract a resource that belongs to or that is part of the patrimony of the Filipino people, you don’t give exemptions. You get the
What was accomplished? For mining, it was revitalization and putting in place a system that would have an equitable sharing of benefits from mining - not only for the government but also for the local community and indigenous people. benefits as share of the Filipino people. That is what I have always advocated. The thing that makes me a little controversial is that while I am promining, I’m not exactly espousing all the things that the industry wants. I always go for the middle ground and I’m pro-government. Share it with the people. I go for mining that provides equitable sharing. I believe that mining can contribute immensely to economic growth and it will also provide, aside from taxes, benefits for the indigenous people. Portal: Do you believe that the mining industry today has already shifted into a responsible kind of mining? Ramos: Yes. In fact the investments have grown by leaps and bounds. Now the investment is four billion US dollars as compared to a lot less just five to six years ago. There are major discoveries also - major discoveries of world class
deposits. Beyond the investment, mining companies have committed billions of pesos for environmental management and social/community development as mandated by the law. With the exception of a few, I believe that the industry is making progress in implementing responsible mining on the ground, in individual mine sites. In due time, the industry can demonstrate to the Filipino people that there is such a thing as responsible mining and that disturbed lands due to
mining can be rehabilitated. Portal: How would you define responsible/ sustainable mining? Ramos: I’ll define it as “the integration of the environmental management, social development and the economic objectives in the day-to-day operations of a company”. For instance, once you have identified and defined a mineral deposit, you prepare a feasibility study where you input all the technical, environmental,
social and economic cost factors. If after all of these costs are absorbed and the government share is satisfied and the project is still viable then we can say that the project can proceed. In this case, the environmental and social costs of modern mining, and the profit objectives of the company are all satisfied, then we can consider the mining project as sustainable. This normally requires high profit potential ore bodies and as such marginal deposits may not be qualified for development. Portal: Can you give examples of responsible/ sustainable mining operations in the country? Ramos: Philex Mining is one. If you look into their record, they have free elementary and high schools, they have hospitals, and almost 5% to 15% of their cost is provided for the community. The Atlas copper mine in Cebu is also doing the same. But most companies are responsible in their own way. Many are spending for CSR projects outside of those mandated by law. Portal: But, there’s still much work to be done? Ramos: Yes, of course. The government is coming out with policy reforms again to address the perceived controversies in mining. For me, reforms should be focused on the appropriate share of government, value-added mineral possessing activities, strengthened and efficient implementation of existing environmental rules and information campaigns. It’s about time they share their information with the public and the community so people will understand. It is high time the government participate in the Extractive