‘Full digitalization’ to further streamline mining permits processing–denr chief
THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is further streamlining the processing of mining permits this year with the full digitalization of exploration permit (EP) and Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (MPSA) processes, Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-loyzaga said.
The event, co-organized by the DENR and the advisory and research consultancy firm Stratbase, on Friday gathered various stakeholders in the mining industry, including government regulators and officials of mining firms and their representatives.
Loyzaga noted that the Marcos administration has ushered in a renewed focus on revitalizing the mining sector and that the message is clear—the Philippines must leverage its status as one of the world’s most mineral-rich nations to drive economic growth.
She noted that in the administration’s first 100 days, the DOF had stressed that the mining industry holds unparalleled potential to steer the Philippines toward both economic recovery and sustained development.
“In the past year alone, the country has generated a total of P160 billion in the production of copper, gold, and nickel. Recently, Oceana Gold turned over to DENR the government share of more than one billion pesos as part of its FTAA agreement,”she said.
Moreover, the DENR chief said the social development and management plan or SDMP for 2023 exceeded P1.35 billion of direct expenditures of mining operations to benefit their host and neighboring communities.
“The contributions from the mining sector are bound to significantly increase in the years to come,” she noted.
During the conference dubbed Revitalizing the Philippine Mining Industry: A Pillar for Inclusive and Resilient Economic Growth and Development, Yulo-loyzaga said DENR has enhanced the efficiency in processing mining permits.
“For the period 2020-2022, a total of 34 EPS and MPSAS have been released. For the same length of time during this administration, we’ve increased the processing and release of EPS and MPSAS by 29 percent. This includes the MPSA of a gold mine and an aggregates project in the north, and a nickel mine in the Visayas as well as EPS for nickel and gold exploration in other parts of Luzon,” she said.
She said they hope to move forward, starting with the full digitalization of EP and MPSA processes this year.
Loyzaga said the DENR had embarked on a couple of projects with PWC and Deloitte in digitizing Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) data and mapping the MGB procedures to find how to further reduce the processing time.
“Significantly, we are committing to explore the possibility of parallel processing of permits and approvals by different government agencies instead of the sequential process which requires awaiting compliance with one before proceeding forward to acquire another,” she said.
Nevertheless, Yulo-loyzaga said the streamlining of mining permits would not exclude the deeper evaluation of the impacts of resource exploration and development on livelihoods and communities, ecosystem services, cultural identities, and historically significant natural systems and built heritage.
For instance, she said the DENR has for the first time required the proximity to protected areas and historically and culturally important sites in the application for Environmental Compliance Certificates (ECCS).
She said the DENR is also consulting with the National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP), the National Commission on Culture and Arts (NCAA), and the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) on the safeguarding of rights and important historical and cultural sites.
“We are also consulting with NEDA and DOLE on ways to identify and value the contributions of the mining and mineral resources industry beyond taxes fees and royalties, to account for the social and economic impact of 233,000 direct jobs and the associated value of infrastructure such as road networks, health services, education, housing and the service sectors on economic growth and development,” she said.