Nickel mining site in Mati outside of protected areas

MATI CITY, DAVAO ORIENTAL- The nickel mining site of the Austral-Asia link Mining Corporation and Hallmark Mining Corporation is located outside of the Mt. Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary and the Pujada Bay Seascape and Landscape.

In a statement, the local government unit of Mati City said that the mining area is “four kilometers away from the boundary of the Pujada Bay Seascape which is a protected area and is also outside the Mt. Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary which is a Unesco-heritage site.”

The mining site located in Barangay Macambol in Mati City comprises a total area measuring 17,215.49 hectares.

The Mati City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CiENRO) clarified that the mining operation has been issued a Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (MPSA) by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in 2004 and has been in operation since then.

When a nationwide ban on open-pit mining was implemented in 2017, the mining company also stopped its operation.

Aside from the Mineral Production Service Agreement (MPSA) the mining site also has an environmental compliance certificate (ECC).

A special tree cutting permit was also issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Also a multi-partite monitoring team (MMT) was created to monitor the strict enforcement and compliance to the several environmental safeguards put in place to ensure the protection of the environment. 

According to the statement the MMT is headed by the DENR-MGB director with the City of Mati LGU as a member. The LGU is represented by the Mati CiENRO and the Mati City Health Office in the said MMT. The MMT is also composed of DENR XI, DENR CENRO, Provincial ENRO, IP Davao Oriental, tribal chieftain of Barangay Macambol, punong barangay of Macambol, community and government relations manager of the mining companies, as well as the resident mine manager. 

Mati CiENRO has been constantly monitoring the operation of the mining company since 2004

With the lifting of the mining ban last December 2021, Hallmark Mining Corporation is now preparing the necessary documents required for it to resume its operation.

Opposition

Several residents and cause-oriented groups however have voiced out their apprehension and opposition to the reopening of the mining operations in Mati City.

“Forest destruction is not an intergenerationally fair decision despite legal approvals.

Nothing can replace primary forest, destroyed biodiversity and important watersheds.  It is a very ugly scar on the beautiful Mt Hamiguitan Peninsula and Macambol-Cabuaya coastal zone. This is wrong,” wrote Dr. Roy Ponce, president of the Davao Oriental State University in his social media status. (PIA/RG Alama)