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SC issues writ on Zambales mining

GIVING complaining residents their day in court, the Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a writ of kalikasan in favor of a community in Sta. Cruz, Zambales province, who had accused five mining companies of polluting their municipality.

In an en banc resolution, the high court referred the case to the Court of Appeals to hold proceedings on the plea and determine whether the case merits the issuance of a temporary environmental protection order (Tepo), which would in effect suspend mining operations in Sta. Cruz.

Pending proceedings at the appellate court, mining operations may continue.

The petitioners sought to stop nickel ore mining in the northern Zambales town, claiming that it had destroyed the ecosystem in the neighboring communities of Candelaria town, also in Zambales, and Infanta town in Pangasinan province. They blamed mining companies for causing severe flooding in recent years.

听鈥楽ufficient in form, substance鈥

Respondents were Environment Secretary Ramon Paje, regional environment officials and five mining firms鈥擝enguet Corp. Nickel Mines Inc., Eramen Minerals Inc., LNL Archipelago Minerals Inc., Zambales Diversified Metals Corp. and Shangfil Mining and Trading Corp.

Theodore Te, spokesperson of the Supreme Court, said in a press briefing that the tribunal found the petition 鈥渟ufficient in form and substance鈥 to merit the issuance of the writ of kalikasan.

It directed the appellate court 鈥渢o receive the appropriate pleadings and conduct hearings鈥 and the respondents 鈥渢o file their respective verified return,鈥 or a pleading equivalent to a comment鈥 within 10 days of receiving the writ.

The ruling came in the midst of the transition toward the administration of President-elect Rodrigo Duterte, who had earlier expressed his fierce opposition to destructive mining operations, particularly in Mindanao.

听鈥楽poiling land鈥

In a speech at his victory party in Davao City on June 4, Duterte said the mining industry that had been 鈥渟poiling the land鈥 and must 鈥渟hape up,鈥 and that pollutive mining operations must stop.

The Sta. Cruz residents accused the respondents of violating provisions of the Mining Act of 1995 for practices that cause, among others, 鈥渨ater, air and soil pollution, heavy laterite siltation of river systems, coasts, farmlands, fishponds and residential areas, forest denudation resulting in soil erosions, and exacerbated flood problems during typhoons and heavy rains.鈥

They also said the mining firms were responsible for the 鈥渄estruction of irrigation systems鈥 in Sta. Cruz, which severely reduced the palay production in a province considered the country鈥檚 rice granary.

In March, antimining advocates barricaded the national road in Zambales to stop mining firms from hauling nickel ore to port. Similar protest actions were held in previous months, which had led to several arrests.

In November, the regional Mines and Geosciences Bureau said it found 鈥渘o signs of breach or collapse鈥 in perimeter canals, ponds and silt traps in facilities of mining firms operating in town, which the locals had blamed for devastating floods that hit the area in the wake of Typhoon 鈥淟ando鈥 (international name: Koppu) in October 2015.

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