The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Tuesday stressed that its decision to allow the resumption of operations of the Rapu-Rapu Polymetallic Mine of Lafayette Philippines Inc. (LPI) on Rapu-Rapu Island, Albay was based on sound science and transparency.

DENR Acting Secretary Francisco Bravo said the decision was based on thorough and documented investigations made by DENR engineers and scientists throughout the 120-day test-run that was made open to the public and subjected to third-party evaluation.

“Our men from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) and Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) in Region V were there 24 hours a day, seven days a week, throughout the test-run strictly monitoring and ensuring the compliances to all the conditions set out by the Pollution Adjudication Board,” Bravo said.

Citing the transparency instituted in the conduct of the test-run, Bravo said the test-run was made open to the public. A total of 66 groups or over 200 individuals from academe, local government units, media, non-government organizations, religious, business and professional groups were recorded to have come to the site to observe the test run being undertaken by the company.

LPI has also commissioned Engr. Marcelo Bolaño, a renowned dam design expert in the mining industry, to review the dam design and materials used to determine the integrity of the tailings dam of the Rapu-Rapu Mine.

Dr. Carlos Primo David of the University of the Philippines was the third-party expert commissioned to review the acid mine drainage plan of the Mine.

Process experts from the Metallurgical Society of the Philippines, namely Engr. Paterno Inginiero Jr. and Mr. Jake Foronda, were also commissioned to review the milling process employed by the company including the efficiency of its detoxification system.

The reports of the third-party experts were submitted to the PAB and served as one of the bases in the decision to allow the polymetallic mine to resume operations.

“All monitoring, investigations and evaluations undertaken by DENR personnel and third-party experts are documented. The public can check them. We have nothing to hide,” Bravo said.

Clarifying an earlier statement made by Sorsogon Bishop Arturo Bastes, the acting DENR chief said the former chairman of the Rapu-Rapu Fact-finding Commission was given a copy of these reports, as promised, on the same day that the DENR has announced the decision.

Bravo said DENR Secretary Angelo T. Reyes agreed to provide the Bishop with all technical reports that served as bases for the PAB decision. The meeting, which was also attended by MGB Director Horacio C. Ramos, and third-party experts Bolaño and David, was sought by Reyes as a courtesy to the Bishop.

Last Thursday, Reyes handed down the DENR’s decision to issue the formal lifting order to Rapu-Rapu Mine, effectively allowing the mine to resume operations after 15 months of suspension.

Reyes had acknowledged the substantive inputs and deep insights provided by the Bastes-led Commission and the third-party experts from the academe and mining industry practitioners.

The DENR chief added that the Rapu-Rapu experience has provided the wake-up call for a more rigorous compliance by the entire mining industry to responsible and sustainable mining in the Philippines.

The lifting order still comes with stringent conditions, including the continuous implementation of the operational control measures identified by DENR-MGB’s Technical Working Group and the continuous execution of actions recommended by the third party experts and the immediate expansion of the existing Multipartite Monitoring Team (MMT) to include representatives from the academe, non-government organizations and other interested stakeholders.

In November 2005, the DENR suspended the operations of the Rapu-rapu Mine following two tailings spills on October 11 and 31 of the same year. It was fined a total of Php 10.4 million for violating RA 9275 or the Clean Water Act by the PAB and another Php300,000 by MGB-Region V for violating its environmental compliance certificate (ECC).

In March 2006, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo formed an independent fact-finding commission headed by Sorsogon Bishop Arturo Bastes to determine and investigate the effects of the mine tailings spillage on the people’s health and the environmental safety of the project.

On July 9, 2006, the DENR allowed Lafayette to conduct a three-stage-test run of its mining operations. The objective was to determine the overall environmental soundness of its mining operations and the adequacy of the measures it has put in place to prevent a repeat of the spills.

February 13, 2007

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