Skip to main content

DavOr PLGU wants closure of nickel mine in Banaybanay


Silted and discolored Mapagba River in Banaybanay

DAVAO ORIENTAL, Jan. 26 (PIA) -- The Provincial Government of Davao Oriental wants a permanent halt in the operations of the Riverbend Consolidated Mining Corporation/Ark Nickel Resources, Inc., (RCMC/ANRI), whose irresponsible practices caused the massive siltation discoloring the Mapagba and Pintatagan Rivers in the Municipality of Banaybanay.

Provincial Governor Nelson L. Dayanghirang sent his letter to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) requesting to revoke the license of the mining firm RCMI/ANRI after the massive siltation in the rivers of Mapagba and Pintatagan in Banaybanay due to its disregard for the environmental-friendly and sustainable mining practices.

After assessing the site, the rivers became discolored, which turned orange due to the presence of nickel laterite after heavy rainfall in the previous days, the statement in the provincial's social media page reads.

"Based on the findings of my technical personnel, the siltation ponds were not wide and deep enough, causing the discolored water discharges to overflow while some portions of discharges were not directed to the catchment ponds. The company's environmental mitigating measures and preparedness to address unforeseen events is not enough," a part of Dayanghirang's letter to DENR posted in the province's social media page explaining the reasons why the mining company has to be closed.

Dayanghirang also cited that the company disregarded its commitment to protecting the environment, which caused massive damage to it.

The letter also emphasized that while the mining company has mainly contributed to the income generation of the local government, it will not sacrifice environmental protection for it. (PIA XI Davao del Norte/jmda/Ezri M. Coda, Jr. with reports from PIO - Davao Oriental)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

DOH XI hires more nurses, doctors

DAVAO CITY, September 6 (PIA) – The Department of Health XI bared its emergency hiring for nurses and doctors following the need to augment the personnel requirement of COVID19 hospitals from all over the region. The head of the DOH XI Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit Dr. Rachel Pasion, in today’s DOH Virtual Presser reported that in Davao City alone combining both the COVID19 hospitals and the private hospitals have utilized 674 COVID19 beds out of the 830 beds or 79.4 utilization rate. This brings the region’s critical care utilization at a high risk level. The Southern Philippine Medical Center, in the past few days, released an advisory informing the public that it has been experiencing an unusually high volume of patients needing admission for COVID19. As of September 5, the facility has utilized 85 ICU beds out of the 92 total number of beds; utilized 490 ward beds out of 496 total number of beds.   In the Province of Davao Oriental which is experiencing a surge in COVID19 ...

Pilipinas Shell to build import facility in Sta. Cruz, DavSur

DAVAO CITY, April 22-   Petroleum giant Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation will be constructing its Darong Import Facility in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur. When completed it will be the third largest import facility in the country after the Shell Import Facility Tabangao in Batangas and the North Mindanao Import Facility in Cagayan de Oro. The Darong Import Facility has a rated capacity of 67-million liters of petroleum products.   The import facility will help and promote business continuity and stability in the area by providing needed fuel resources for mobility during storms, floods and other calamities. A groundbreaking ceremony was held in Darong, Sta Cruz   on April 22.   The event was attended by   Engr. Jaime G. Lao, Municipal Mayor of Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur; DMCI Holdings Inc. President Sid Consunji; Santa Cruz Storage Corporation President Das Consunji Reyes; and Juan Miguel Delgado, COO of Northern Star; Sta Cruz Storage Corporation and Stephen Tion...

LTO to public: Do not patronize colorum vehicles

  NABUNTURAN, Davao de Oro (PIA) - An official of the Land Transportation Office enjoined the public for the eradication of colorum vehicles plying the streets in Davao region. During the second episode of Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas in Davao City, LTO XI Regional Director Eleanor Calderon urged the public not to patronize colorum vehicles to avoid any road safety risk and to also complement their enforcement operations against these violators. “If we stop patronizing these (colorum vehicles), they will just die a natural death; mawala ra na sila sa kalsad a (they will just vanish in our roads),” Calderon said. The traffic official emphasized that LTO XI has apprehended a total of 115 colorum vehicles from January to April 2024. Calderon also provided tips to identify colorum vehicles. She said that UV express vehicles should have yellow plates; other than that, the public should not board not yellow-plated vehicles whose drivers or operators are offering rides for a fee. “Dapat ...