Repeal of mining law unlikely

First posted 11:12am (Mla time) Aug 06, 2006
Cebu Daily News

http://news.inq7.net/archive_article/index.php?ver=1&index=1&story_id=13752

ILOILO CITY— The Mining law is unlikely to be repealed by Congress despite the strong opposition of the Catholic Church and environmental groups, an anti-mining congressman said yesterday.

Marinduque Rep. Edmundo Reyes Jr. said the repeal of Republic Act 7942 or the Mining Act of 1985 is "far-fetched."

"It will not be repealed in the immediate future," Reyes said in a press conference here Friday following a forum on mining organized by the Archdiocese of Jaro.

Reyes pointed out that the Arroyo administration has "made it clear that mining is one of the industries that can help us get out from weak economic position right now."

He said the government expects annual earnings from mining to reach between $5 billion and $7 billion.

Until there is an industry that can bring in similar revenues, the government will allow large-scale mining to continue, said Reyes.

Party-list congressmen have filed several bills seeking to repeal the law but Reyes said even if Congress enacts the bill, the President could still exercise her veto power.

The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) on January 29 issued a pastoral letter reiterating its position issued in 1998 calling for the repeal of the mining law.

In its statement, the CBCP said the Mining Act "destroys life." The prelates had said that mining "threatens people's health and environmental safety through the wanton dumping of waste and tailings in rivers and seas" and they decried the absence of safeguards against environmental disasters.

The CBCP called for stopping 24 priority mining projects of the government and the closure of large-scale mining projects.

But mining firms have warned that heeding the call of the bishops would result in loss of jobs and livelihood to millions of people and would also drive away investors.

Reyes said because of the difficulty in repealing the Mining Act, campaigns against mining should be directed at the grassroots especially in areas with ongoing or proposed mining projects.

"This will be the battle ground," said Reyes. "We should learn from lessons of the past," Reyes said, pointing out to the massive environmental damage in his home province of Marinduque after an accident in a copper mine sent millions of tons of mining wastes to a river down to the provincial capital of Boac in 1996. Inquirer