JFC bucks House bills on mining-free zones

The Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC) in the Philippines is opposing several House bills declaring mining-free zones and are seen to have the effect of amending the Philippine Mining Act of 1995.

In a letter submitted to Rep. Arnel Ty, chairperson of the House Committee on Natural Resources, the JFC cited nine House bills that are “inconsistent with the Philippine Constitution and the Mining Act and should not be considered and approved by Congress.”

These include House Bills 5790, 5789, 6012, 6011, 4387, 5301, 6405, 5086 and 6336.

“The Joint Foreign Chambers recommend that the Mining Act be respected and implemented evenly throughout the nation without need of new legislation such as the foregoing House bills,” it said.

The JFC seeks to promote mining as a viable and stable industry for the Philippines, under existing constitutional and legal structures which creates jobs, empowers communities and enables sustainable ecological and economic development, and bereft of erratic and inconsistent mining policy.

According to the group, 30 percent of the country’s land area with a total of nine million hectares has high mineral potential.

Of this, the JFC said actual mining footprint for the existing operating mines when added together is only 60,000 hectares or only 0.2 percent of the total land mass of the entire Philippine archipelago.

“RA 7942 of 1995, the Philippine Mining Act, was enacted to resuscitate the industry. It opened the doors to potential developers of mining projects. By providing significant social and environmental safety nets, the law is considered to be a model legal framework for sustainable development and among the best in the world. Mining should respect the community and environment, which proper implementation of the Philippine Mining Act will achieve,” JFC said.

“In comparison to other mining laws of other countries such as the UK, US, Australia and Canada, where mining plays a strong role in the growth of their first world economies, the Mining Act is deemed as being at par, if not better, in including social and environmental obligations of mining companies,” it added.

The JFC has also made a call on the need to revive interest in the mining industry by providing for a more stable investment environment for the industry.

“The JFC supports and promotes open international trade, increased foreign investment, and improved conditions for business to benefit both the Philippines and the countries the JFC members represent,” it said.

The JFC is a coalition of the American, Australian-New Zealand, Canadian, European, Japanese, Korean chambers and PAMURI, representing over 3,000 member companies engaged in over $100 billion worth of trade and some $30 billion worth of investments in the Philippines.