Mining firm inaugurates P140-M tailings dam

SIOCON, Zamboanga del Norte — Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Angelo Reyes and Canadian Ambassador Peter Sutherland inaugurated last week the P140-million Gossan Dam at the mining site of TVI Resources Development Philippines in Sitio Canatuan.

The dam serves as a catchment for mine tailings produced after the ore is processed for gold and silver. The tailings, which contain cyanide and other chemicals used to separate the precious metals, will be impounded in the dam until it can be recycled back into the mining operations.

The dam, designed by international consultants Knight Piesold to meet both Canadian and Philippine standards, is built to withstand maximum floods and earthquakes to ensure that the tailings do not spill or seep into the waterways and river systems in the surrounding community.

"We do not want a repeat of the tailings spills of the past," Reyes said, referring to the incident in the mines of Lafayette Phils. in Rapu-Rapu, Albay last year and the Marcopper spill in 1996.

"Such spills undermine the government’s push for responsible mining," Reyes added.

Reyes lauded the Canadian mining firm for practising "responsible mining," pouring in $24 million into exploration, cleanup of small scale mine tailings, mine development and progressive mill expansion in the Canatuan operation alone.

Nationally, TVI invested P500 million in its operations last year, as well as $60 million in mine exploration and development ventures.

The Canatuan mine employs 650 workers, more than half of them belonging to the indigenous Subanon tribe. TVI also made P6.3 million in royalty payments to the Subanons in 2005 alone, in addition to providing health, education and infrastructure facilities for the indigenous people of the area.

TVI paid P13.2 million in excise and realty taxes to the government last year.

Citing TVI as a "proponent of socially beneficial responsible mining," Reyes said that the government’s thrust of "24 priority large-scale mining projects will bring in $8 billion in investments, generate P5-7 billion in excise taxes and create 200,000 direct and indirect jobs up to the year 2010."

The priority projects are being pursued under the Philippine Mining Act of 1995, which the Supreme Court recently upheld.

Reyes cautioned though that the developments in the mining sector "cannot be pursued at the expense of the environment."

He said the DENR will not issue permits unless it is "satisfied that the mining firms will comply with laws and regulations" regarding environmental safety and protection.

TVI currently processes 1,500 tons of ore per day, generating P6 million in revenue. The Canatuan site currently mines gold and silver. Future plans include the mining of copper and zinc from the firm’s 508-hectare contract area. — Doreen Yu