PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan (PIA)–The Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Palawan sets the initial discussion of the proposed 25-year mining moratorium ordinance in the province through a committee hearing, January 28, after the draft was lodged in October 2024.
Board member Ryan Maminta, chair of the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, reported receiving responses from the invited agencies between December and January. The committee hearing will be scheduled on February 4.
“After the referral, we have convened the committee and resolved to write the pertinent agencies and stakeholders to submit their positions and submit to us their take on issues about the proposed ordinance,” he said.
Board member Nieves Rosento said that it is high time to discuss the mining moratorium after the observed impact on harvests and water sources for locals.
An environmental non-government organization, Environmental Legal Assistance Center (ELAC), said the draft was lodged in October, following the mining congress hosted by the provincial government of Palawan in April 2024.
ELAC executive director Gerthie Mayo-Anda said that there were documents and scientific bases presented during the mining congress.
Anda supports the need to speed up the hearings process to avoid further damage to Palawan forests.
“The destruction will intensify; hindi na makakahintay ang kagubatan at likas-yaman. Ang tingin ko, ang mga dokumentong ‘yon ay mailabas at maging batayan. Kung pupwede lang, with all due respect sana mabilisan ang hearings,” she said.
ELAC records 11 existing mining applications in Palawan, wherein three are located in Bataraza, four in Brooke’s Point, two in Narra, and two in Quezon.
Meanwhile, the environmental activists and the Catholic Church reported gathering about 100,000 signatures, including 40,000 from the ground and 60,000 online. In addition to the provincial board, they addressed the signature campaign to President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.
Father Roderick Caabay said the stance of the Catholic Church relies on the pastoral letter, highlighting the need for people to be good stewards of the environment. The church will not keep mum about the issue if it endangers the people’s lives, he added. (RG/PIA MIMAROPA-Palawan)
