Livelihood shift: bitter pill for miners
TRANSITION to farming maybe difficult for displaced smallscale miners of Itogon in Benguet.
In Barangay Ampucao, Ermundo Milo, president of Saddle, Heartwell, Gold Coin, Goldhill Community Livelihood Association Incorporated (SHAGCLAI) described the area to be rocky and meant for mining making it difficult for miners to shift to agriculture.
“Kayat me met. Awan ti mabalin nga ma - garden me ta talaga nga purposely imaginem ti ayan me ket bato,
minas, anya ngay ti are relying on mining,” gardenen mi idjay. added Galutan. Diyay ti problema, Agriculture areas Kayat mi nu ada where identified in kuma (We want to. Tinongdan, But we cannot shift Dalupirip, Loakan, to agriculture because Ampucao, and the area is Gumatdang. rocky),” said Milo. With the impending
John Latongan, halt of smallscale president of the mining activities, Luneta Miners Association Itogon Small and a board Scale miner’s Association of director of the convened on Benguet Federation Friday. of Small-Scale Miners Small-scale miners Association expressed are appealing for difficulties the national government to agriculture with to lift the stoppage the condition of the order. collapsed topsoil In Benguet province, and scarce source of small scale water. mining remains as
“Idi late 90’ s di top livelihood for awan ti open pit ti 20,000 miners. Antamok , nagmula Local government kami iti pinya, ken officials and saba (In the late the Mines and Geosciences 90’s, when there was Bureau under no open pit in the Department Antamok, we of Environment and planted pineapple Natural Resources and banana). When reiterated its call for open pit mining began, small scale miners to amu pay abide the cease and nagbaliw ti environment desist order of Secretary ti ayan me (we Roy Cimatu. don’t know, the environment “It’s best for us to show to the government changed)” stated we are law Latongan adding if abiding citizens,” they are to consider Mayor Victorio the shift to agriculture, Palangdan said. this will not After the Itogon sustain their source landslide, National of food. Commission on Indigenous
“Agshift kami agriculture Peoples, kasparigan Mines Geosciences han nga umanay Bureau, Department agsustain ti of Environment and pangalaan ti makan Natural Resources, (If we shift to agriculture, Benguet Corporation it will not be and the Provincial enough to sustain Government of our needs),” added Benguet convene in Latongan. Baguio City on
SHAGCLAI is Wednesday to expedite comprised of 1,000 the processing miners while Luneta of application for a has 1,300 miners. Minahang Bayan for
Itogon Councilor small scale miners. Johnny Galutan Benguet Corporation added most of the had given consent lands in the town to the declaration are owned by private of two individuals. minahang bayan
“Not all those (MB) sites in portions people have land to of its Antamok till. How will we go mineral claims with to agriculture when an area of 86. 2493 seven out of the nine hectares in Ucab and barangays in Itogon Loacan.