Foreign activists here to check mines’ impact

Eighteen foreign activists are looking into the environmental impact of large-scale mining on communities in Benguet and Nueva Vizcaya during a five-day visit that will end on July 29.

Thirty Filipino activists and scientists joined the foreign group from Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, Zambia, Kenya, Papua New Guinea, Belgium, Ecuador and Ghana.

Another team is looking into the situation of residents and employees in Didipio and Quezon towns in Nueva Vizcaya, where the Australian-Canadian OceanaGold and the UK-based FCF Minerals Corp. operate.

“We want to bring the stories of the people affected by large-scale mining to our communities in Canada,” said Meeka Otway of Pauuktuuit Inuit Women, an indigenous women’s organization in Canada.

“We want to see if Canadian mining companies are following the guidelines to protect the environment and are operating with social acceptability outside Canada. We have experienced the negative social and cultural effects of mining on our communities,” she said.

The visit is part of the International People’s Conference on Mining (IPCM) to be held from July 30 to Aug. 1 in Quezon City—the second to be held after 10 years.