ILOILO CITY: The provincial government of Iloilo has issued a cease and desist order (CDO) against two mining firms engaged in mineral exploration on Pan de Azucar Island in Concepcion town.
The CDO was issued against TVI Resource Development Philippines Inc. (TVIRD) and Mindoro Resources Ltd.
TVIRD is a Philippine affiliate of TVI Pacific Inc., a Canadian mining company listed on the stock exchange, while Mindoro Resources Ltd. is also listed as a Canadian company.
Both firms operate under a joint venture agreement for direct shipping ore ventures and processing ventures on Pan de Azucar Island.
The three-page order, signed by Iloilo Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. on March 4 highlighted the detrimental effects of mining on the island, particularly as a natural resource of the province.
"Pan de Azucar Island, a significant landmark of Concepcion, declared an eco-tourism site and surrounded by a fish sanctuary, stands to be adversely affected," a dispositive part of the CDO read.
Pan de Azucar Island comprises the villages of Tambaliza, Macatunao and Talotoan. The mining company has established barracks in Talotoan, designating the area as its base for exploration activities.
Lawyer Cesar Emmanuel Buyco, Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (Penro) chief, personally delivered the CDO to the mining firms on Thursday morning, March 7.
The CDO also emphasized that continued mining activities could potentially lead to arsenic contamination of groundwater and other environmental hazards.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer in 2018 cited arsenic as a human carcinogen that has been associated with skin, lung, liver, kidney, urinary bladder and prostate cancer.
The Penro confirmed arsenic presence in the groundwater of the area following a field investigation on Jan. 10, 2024.
"The Iloilo provincial government bears the primary responsibility to promote health and safety, uphold ecological balance, and safeguard the welfare of its constituents," it added.
The Penro said findings from its investigations have been forwarded to the Environment Management Bureau's Pollution Adjudication Board for thorough evaluation and action.
Unless protective measures for marine life and strategies to mitigate arsenic contamination are established, the halt on the mineral exploration activities will be enforced according to the Penro.
Met with protest
Documents show that the provincial and local government of Concepcion allowed exploration by mining companies on Pan de Azucar Island as early as 2000 through the filing of several resolutions.
A drilling activity of the Mindoro Resources Ltd. in 2011 revealed pyritic sulfide zones with associated copper, gold, silver and zinc mineralization in the area.
However, the transshipment of heavy mining equipment to the island in November 2023 alarmed residents of the island.
In a November general assembly, residents and students from Barangay Tambaliza expressed dissent through placards bearing messages such as "Don't destroy our island," "#SaveOurHome No To Mining" and "Exploring leads to mining" among others.
Defensor also previously said the local government should have been involved in the permit issuance for mining company mineral exploration in Concepcion town, which he described as a flaw in the country's Mining Act of 1995.
"The problem is that it does not go directly to us. We don't want to engage in layering, but that is the province's natural resource. We should have known that from the very beginning, and we will attend to that," he said in a December press conference.
Under the Philippine Mining Act, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) administers the mining industry.
It is the MGB that administers and disposes of mineral lands and resources through the grant of exploration permits and/or mineral agreements to duly qualified entities.
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