Philex Mining willing to put up fund to strengthen government's mines bureau

MANILA, Philippines - Philex Mining Corp. is willing to take the lead in putting up a fund that will help the Department of Environment and Natural Resources- Mines and Geosciences Bureau (DENR-MGB) do its regulatory work properly.

Philex chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan, in a recent talk with reporters, stressed the need for the DENR-MGB to strengthen its regulatory framework in the face of continued and destructive small-scale mining which not only harms the environment, but also the people, from the use of mercury.

At the same time, Pangilinan also noted the increasing loss of qualified staff and the DENR-MGB’s growing difficulty in recruiting properly trained geologist and staff.

The DENR-MGB admits it is losing trained geologist not only due to normal attrition and retirement, but also to local mining firms who are able to offer better compensation to MGB personnel.

At the same time, there are less and less young people going into geology or other related fields because of the hard and difficult work and training involved, and the initial small pay.

Philex, for one, Pangilinan said, is “willing to contribute to a fund to recruit more experts.”

Likewise, Pangilinan said, “ we are prepared to help put up a fund to help the MGB monitor the industry properly.”

According to Pangilinan, aside from strengthening the regulatory framework, the local mining industry also needs to engage in more self-regulation.

The local mining industry, he said, should “step up in order to review the operation of the industry.”

Self-regulation, Pangilinan added, also involves transparency in its operations.

Philex, he said, is “hopefully, leading the way.”

Unfortunately, though, Pangilinan said, the local mining industry includes small-scale miners who are “hard to police” and are the cause of disasters such as the recent Pantukan, Compostela Valley landslide which killed 14 people.

Furthermore, Pangilinan noted the common use of mercury by small-scale miners in refining their gold.

Mercury, Pangilinan warned, harms both the environment and people, resulting in the so-called Minamata disease, a neurological syndrome caused by severe mercury poisoning.

The DENR has already recommended to President Aquino to ban the use of mercury by small-scale miners.