Shared responsibility, shared benefits: Why sustainable mining enhances communities
Whether for employment, livelihood, social development, or revenue from tax contributions, the mining sector continuously provides opportunities to the government and communities across the Philippines–the fifth most mineralized country in the world.
Sustainable and inclusive programs
Enhancing the livelihoods of host communities by providing opportunities, including weaving training
Mining has arguably made some of the most impactful contributions to Philippine society, improving the quality of life of their communities through better access to livelihood, infrastructure, health resources, and sociocultural protection. For one, the sector continues to increase financial support for its social development and management programs, as well as its environment protection and rehabilitation activities.
In the Caraga region alone, where the Philippines has the most active mining spots with a production value of over P85 billion for both metallic and non-metallic mines, around P828 million is allotted for social development and management, and almost P4 billion for environmental protection and rehabilitation. As of December 2022, the region has been able to cover over 12,400 hectares in reforestation efforts. The region also celebrated earlier this year its weeklong Caraga Resilient Mining Week, which celebrated its commitment to work jointly with local government and government agencies, as well as other stakeholders to strengthen their communities’ resilience against the threats of natural disasters. Organized by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau in the Caraga Region (MGB-13), in partnership with the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines and the Philippine Society of Mining Engineers, the weeklong activity highlighted diverse programs designed to equip participants with the right knowledge and tools to help their communities become more resilient and sustainable in terms of disaster prevention and recovery. Discussions also focused on the promotion of responsible mining investments, as well as the proper use of mineral resources.
Meanwhile, in terms of livelihood, the community in what once was known as the Canatuan Mine in Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte now relies heavily on their flourishing rubber tree farms–also a key factor in the area’s complete rehabilitation. The work towards this rehabilitation has been more than a decade in the making. Back in 2007, when operations were still in full swing, Filipino-Canadian mining company TVI Resource Development Phils. Inc. (TVIRD) partnered with the local Subanon indigenous peoples to start the rubber tree project. Today, the likes of Jimmy Lingala work as a farmer and rubber tapper during his off-duty hours from his “day job” as a security guard, after TVIRD supplied him and the community with the rubber seedlings. This has supplemented his income, earning him an additional P4,000 every month from his one-hectare rubber tree farm. These rubber trees are now one of the main income sources of Subanons. Canatuan is also surrounded by rubber plantations in Siocon, as well as nearby municipalities RT Lim and Tungawan. The Subanons’ story is one of many in mining communities, where many other industries have thrived.
In barangay Wangke, in Claver, Surigao del Norte, Taganito Mining Corp. (TMC), a subsidiary of Nickel Asia Corp. (NAC), supports the Gagmay’ng Mananagat sa Wangke (GAMAWA), a cooperative of small fishermen, ensuring livelihood security for the community.
The same goes for FCF Minerals Corporation, which provides 21 community-based organizations access to funds and technical assistance, one of which is Runo Sewing Services (RSS). Through RSS, members have completed the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority’s (TESDA) Community-Based Training on Dressmaking, which has helped them establish their own shop that produces uniforms, pillows, curtains, and rags. They also provide sewing services to FCF employees and residents of Runruno and neighboring barangays in Quezon, Nueva Vizcaya.
Fredelyn Escaño, one of the trainees, shared that the income she earns from sewing has enabled her to save money and provide for their children’s school allowances and other family needs. Analyn Felix, another trainee says that because she now earns more she is able to provide for the daily needs of her family.
In the Cordillera region, the likes of Lepanto Consolidated Mining have focused on the weaving industry through the Lepanto Weavers Organization (LWO), providing them a viable way to earn. Suzette Anongos who learned the craft at a very young age from her mother, was presented with an opportunity to make this her alternative source of livelihood. She shared that the mining company has helped her a lot even though she didn’t get a chance to go to school.
There’s also abaca farming in Zamboanga del Sur, enabled by initiatives such as TVIRD’s Good Agricultural Practices Trainers’ Training Program for Subanon indigenous peoples; as well as coffee farming, which has become a valuable livelihood for communities in Palawan.
Community infrastructure development
Mining companies support sustainable community development through various programs.
Apart from providing livelihood opportunities, sustainable mining companies also help host communities become self-sustaining through the establishment of physical and social infrastructures which provide further economic and social benefits.
Over at Sta. Cruz in Zambales, Eramen Minerals Inc. (EMI) provided funding for the construction of a communal canal and box culvert at Purok 6 in Barangay Guinabon. The project now supplies water from Pitugo River to some 105 hectares of farmland in this village, helping most of the farmers in the community who rely on irrigation for their produce. The canal and box culvert also serve as an alternative pathway for fish and will enhance upland productivity while ensuring environmental sustainability. EMI has also helped protect farmers’ crops and improve water flow in Barangay Guisguis by constructing a 685-meter berm and by desilting and dredging a drainage canal in the village.
Another notable infrastructure project, a joint venture with the local government of Carrascal, is by Marcventures Mining and Development Corporation (MMDC), which helped build houses for families living in Barangay Bon-ot, Panikian, Banban, and Gamuton. The project directly addresses the UN Sustainable Development Goal on Safe and Resilient Human Settlements and Sustainable Communities.
MMDC has likewise built facilities for potable water in Cabangahan plus a daycare and feeding centers in Panikian, Parang, and Babuyan. Farmers have been given rice seeds, organic fertilizers, and carabaos to help plow the farmlands and yield more crops for higher income. To help them deliver their products to market, farmers have also been given chariot vehicles.
Other initiatives by MMDC include the donation of rotovator machines to farmers in barangay Cabas-an, Parang, and Bacolod, and a rice mill that offers affordable rice clearing services.
Meanwhile, 30 barangays in Kiblawan, Davao del Sur each got P25,000 “seed money” for development initiatives from Sagittarius Mines Inc. (SMI). About half of the 30 recipient barangays have centuries-old Blaan tribal domains whose residents the SMI is helping empower through humanitarian interventions. SMI also released a check each worth P75,000 to the barangay governments of Tacub, Abnate, and Bulolsalo in Kiblawan, and provided a P75,000 grant to the Indigenous Peoples in the same barangays.
The assistance was intended for projects meant to address poverty and underdevelopment in the four Kiblawan barangays, drawn from SMI’s social development program allocation.
Looking at the benefits that the mining industry currently brings to local communities, the Philippines should look into exploring further this sector’s untapped potential, keeping sustainability and responsibility as top priorities while pushing for growth. As clearly stated by Philex Mining chair Manuel V. Pangilinan at the 2023 Mining Conference held in September: “Mining is not the enemy, poverty is. The most damaging myth in which our industry must contend with is the idea that we must choose between sustainability and mining. We should forge ahead together as one industry, in unity, in strength, and do the right things for our people and our planet.”
Industry Outlook
According to research by S&P Global Market Intelligence, the Philippines produced around 360,000 metric tons of contained nickel in 2022, or 11 percent of the global production, which places the country in second place, after the world’s top nickel producer, Indonesia. The report also states that the Philippines “continues to rank among the top in the Asia-Pacific region in terms of metal reserves, most notably for nickel, and ranks fourth in nickel reserves globally, accounting for 10 percent of the global total.” Data from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) further show that employment in the mining industry rose from an estimated 180,000 in 2020 to 208,000 by the end of 2022.
In terms of nickel direct shipping ore (DSO), the Philippines is the world’s largest exporter of raw, unprocessed nickel – making it the largest supplier of DSO in the global steel value chain. According to Y2022 statistics of the MGB, the country produced close to 30 million dry metric tonnes (DMT) of nickel DSO valued at more than P61 billion.
A large portion of this value translates to national and local tax revenues for the Government, royalties for indigenous cultural communities, and a vast number of social development programs for mining communities across the country.
At the Mining Conference, Pangilinan likewise pointed out the sector’s important role in pushing forward sustainability, through the promotion of green technologies. “The world is entering an era of sustained resource demand as economies expand and population explodes. The Philippines missed the economic bus during the manufacturing cycle in the ‘50s and ‘60s, and the export boom in the ‘70s and ‘80s. This time we cannot miss this bus yet again, with our available mineral resource base,” Pangilinan said.
ADVT.
