Anti-mining group faces libel

Manila Standard Today

Wednesday July 11,2007

A6

LAFAYETTE Philippines sued yesterday an anti-mining group and its key officers for libel, saying their brand of irresponsible and unprincipled advocacy employed a systematic pattern of lies and hate-mongering to pressure the government to close down the company.

"We are taking this unprecedented defensive measure to protect the company and the thousands of people we employ directly and indirectly, and to force these anti-mining groups to be a positive force through a moral, honest, and responsible advocacy," said Carlos g Dominguez, chairman and president of Lafayette.'

Included in the complaint filed before the Pasig City Prosecutor's Office were the trustees of the, Centre for Environmental Concerns Inc. and its executive director, Frances Quimpo, who, for almost two years running, insisted on allegations that had long been proven as a hoax and unscientific.

The company is seeking P l0 million in damages which it plans to use as a scholarship fund for deserving Rapu-Rapu students to secure advanced degrees in environmental management and protection. .

The company is also preparing similar complaints against radical 'groups, including a Rapu-Rapu Island resident who even flew to Melbourne just to distribute anti-Lafayette handouts to the company's bankers. .

"These groups, want Bicol region's biggest investor and job creator to close down under the guise of protecting the environment. Some of them have even gone as low as, telling the Rapu-Rapu residents that they are better off as poor fishermen than have the Rapu-Rapu Polymetallic Project around," he said.

Dominguez said the anti-mining advocates succeeded last year in making people believe that the company caused a mercury spill off the coast of Sorsogon , across the sea from Rapu-Rapu, the project's location. He said the company does not use mercury at all.

"It took us months to clear our name with, the help of independent scientific groups. But the worst injury of the mercury hoax was on the 5,000 Sorsogon fishermen who could not sell their catch. The poor got poorer and more desperate, while the miscreants got away," he said.

Dominguez said this should not be the case because responsible non-government organizations have a big role to play especially in monitoring as the country becomes a major mining player in the region.

CEC, in its various handouts and campaigns, had accused the company of "engaging in the illicit sale of Philippine natural resources," being "deceitful in reporting its production," "epitomize(s) irresponsible mining," "causing fish kills," and causing various ailments in the community that doctors said came from poverty and poor hygiene

The Rapu Rapu Shares are trading at their lowest to my knowledge!

Today the price is at

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Code	Last	% Chg	Bid	Offer	Open	High	Low	Vol
LAF	0.041	-4.65%	0.040	0.041	0.042	0.042	0.040	10,571,301

Closing prices

Closing prices are displayed for the last 5 days on which the security traded on ASX within the last 6 months.

Date	Last	% Change	High	Low	Vol *
10 Jul 2007	0.043	-6.52%	0.046	0.043	9,006,491
09 Jul 2007	0.046	0%	0.048	0.045	7,393,294
06 Jul 2007	0.046	-4.17%	0.049	0.046	7,282,141
05 Jul 2007	0.048	0%	0.050	0.048	4,736,368
04 Jul 2007	0.048	2.13%	0.049	0.048	4,914,359

* Volume of shares shown represents only those shares traded on ASX.

DENR: Small-scale miners must comply with environmental rules

Stressing that the government adheres only to responsible mining, Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Angelo T. Reyes on Tuesday reiterated that small-scale mining operations are not excused from complying with the environmental, safety and health, and social provisions of the Mining Act of 1995.

Reyes issued the statement as he announced the issuance of the clarificatory guidelines that should finally put to rest all issues and misconceptions on small-scale mining operations.

"We want to ensure that in any case, our people would benefit from the extraction of our minerals whether through small, medium or large-scale operation, while their health and safety are taken care of, and our environment protected," the DENR chief said.

Reyes issued the guidelines last week to all concerned DENR officials and offices including all Provincial/City Mining Regulatory Boards (P/CMRB), a body created under Republic Act (RA) No. 7076 otherwise known as The Act Creating a People's Small-scale Mining Program to implement the said Act and another law on small-scale mining, Presidential Decree (PD) No. 1899 that established Small-scale Mining as a New Dimension in Mineral Development.

He said that aside from those of RA 7076, and PD 1899, small-scale mining permit holders and contractors must submit to the environmental, safety and health and social provisions of the Mining Act of 1995.

As such, Reyes said small-scale miners are required to secure environmental compliance certificate (ECC) from the regional offices of the DENR's Environmental Management Bureau and submit a potential environmental impact report (PEIR), a final mine rehabilitation/decommissioning plan, and a community cevelopment and management program (CDMP) duly approved by DENR's Mines and Geosciences Bureau. A PEIR is a simplified Environmental Protection and Enhancement Program, while the CDMP is a simplified Social Development Management Program, both of which are basic requirements to medium- and large-scale mining contractors under the Mining Act of 1995.

Combating unscrupulous small-scale miners

Reyes also laid emphasis on the definition of small-scale mining as provided for in both RA 7076 and PD 1899, which should protect the government from unscrupulous entities that pose as small-scale miners while, in fact, conducting large-scale mining operations.

"Our laws are clear: small-scale mining refers to largely artisanal mining operations with heavy reliance on manual labor and without the use of explosives," he said.

In terms of production, he stressed, the maximum annual production allowed for metallic minerals shall be 50,000 dry metric tons (DMT) of "ore, not the metal itself." For non-metallic minerals, the allowed maximum annual production is 50,000 DMT of the material itself. In terms of area, mining permit holders and contractors are only allowed a maximum of 20 hectares per permit or contract area.

"The DENR would be very strict on these provisions along with environmental requirements," Reyes warned. "Only applications with ECC conforming with the provisions of RA 7076 and PD 1899 especially with respect to the limit of 50,000 dry metric tons, and the area limit of 20 hectares per permit or contract area, shall be allowed to mine on a small-scale basis. Indiscriminate small-scale mining operation must be stopped."

It can be recalled that the definition of maximum annual production has been a point of debate recently with DENR field offices reporting that some small-scale mining permit holders and contractors have been producing in excess of the 50,000 DMT annual limit for metallic minerals. The Department has suspended the operations of these companies.

There is also a widespread observation that indiscriminate small-scale mining operations are dragging the large-scale mining industry sector into the controversy on the environmental impacts of mining.

The government recognizes the important role of small-scale mining in the economy particularly in providing livelihood in the countryside.

Mines and Geosciences Bureau records show that of the PhP68.4 billion gross production value in mining in 2006, over PhP28.1 billion or about 41% came from small-scale gold mining alone.

It is estimated that there are over 2,000 approved small-scale mining permits all over the country, involving and benefiting about 200,000 people including miners and their families.

July 10, 2007