Lafayette welcomes inquiry into fishkill

Lafayette Philippines has pledged full cooperation with an official inquiry into a reported fishkill about 10 kilometers away from its polymetallic project in Rapu Rapu, Albay.

“We are cooperating with all government representatives on this and have also invited anti-mining groups to visit the plant to show them that we have been operating as a responsible miner and have nothing to hide,” Bayani Agabin, Lafayette spokesman, said in a statement.

Anti-mining groups invited by the company were expected at its project site yesterday.

Lafayette said it has also taken water and fish samples from the poblacion (town proper) for testing by independent laboratories.

Reports vary on the fishkill volume from 10 kilos to two sacks. The anti-mining groups claimed much more.

Agabin disputed the fishkill allegations, citing, among other reasons, that the polymetallic project has not been in operation since early Oct. 27 for maintenance and that the company’s tailings dam has about 11 meters to spare, from its top and the surface of the water below, which is more than enough to handle a major typhoon.

Agabin said the tailings dam released absolutely no water from the dam in the previous days.

He added that the project is about 10 kilometers from the poblacion, and that the barangays near the project have certified that everything is normal in their areas.

“We are being blamed for something that, for analogy purposes, happened in Makati and we are in, say, Muntinlupa. And yet, the places in between are not affected,” Agabin said.

Barangays Carogcog, Sta. Barbara, Pagcolbon, Malobago, and Binosawan, which are near the mine site, and between the project and the poblacion have already issued a certification that they have had no fishkill at all, Agabin said. 

Clemente Bautista Jr., coordinator of the Kalikasan-People’s Network for the Environment, said they suspect that the reported fishkill “has something to do with Lafayette’s continuing operations on the island.”

Last year, the project was also blamed for an alleged mercury contamination in Sorsogon, across the sea. Lafayette disputed this, saying it did not use mercury, and that it sought the help of independent laboratories and experts. The allegations proved to be a hoax.

But that hoax dealt poor Sorsogon fishermen a cruel blow, Agabin said, because overnight, people stopped buying fish.

A Filipino management took over the polymetallic project in January 2006, more than two months after the project had a mining incident.

The new management then espoused a policy of full transparency and full cooperation with the government and the public. It was allowed to resume operations in February this year.   – Ted Torres, Katherine Adraneda