TALKS ON MINING OPS CLOSURE IN MASARA EYED

RDC-Davao will be meeting in March to discuss possible closure of mining operation in the No Build Zone

FOLLOWING the recent landslide in Barangay Masara in Maco, Davao de Oro on February 6, 2024, Arturo Milan, vice-chair of the Davao Regional Development Council (RDCDavao), confirmed that the council will be conducting a comprehensive meeting to discuss the closure of mining operation in the affected area.

The Provincial Local Government Unit of Davao de Oro (PLGU-Davao de Oro) has already agreed that the danger zone as identified by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) should be free from any residential buildings and infrastructures.

“Wala pa, but I have heard already coming from Governor Gonzaga (of Davao de Oro) that they have identified the nobuild-zone na strictly enforced na gyud ang no build zone which caused the lives of many but as to whether to stop mining, wala pay balita ang RDC but we will be meeting by March,” the official said during the 14th Anniversary of Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) and the 30th Founding Anniversary of the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia -Malaysia-Philippines-East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-Eaga) press conference on Friday evening, February 16, 2024.

(Wala pa but I have heard already from Governor Gonzaga that they have identified the nobuild-zone, that will be strictly enforced the no-build zone which caused the lives of many, but as to whether to stop mining, RDC has no news about this but we will be having a meeting by March).

To recall, MGB-Davao revealed that Masara has been identified as a “No Build Zone” since 2008 and has been listed as a critical area due to its geographical location and the presence of volcaniclastics – a type of soil that is made up of fragments of volcanic origin, as agglomerate, tuff, and certain other rocks.

Based on the initial tally provided by the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (MDRRMO) of Maco, 98 bodies have been recovered by the emergency rescuers while nine individuals have been reported to the Management of the Dead Missing (MDM) as missing.