Philex faces P325-M fine over spillage
THE country’s largest mining company is now facing an initial P325million penalty for environmental damage caused by a waste spillage in one of its tailings pond.
In an interview, Environment Secretary Ramon Paje said that they will charge Philex Mining Corp. an initial amount of P325 million in line with the Mining Act of 1995, which imposes a fine of P50 per metric tons of sediments spilled from a tailings facility.
“So far, the Environmental Management Bureau has assessed at least five million cubic meter of sediments have spilled from tailings pond no.3,” he said.
The DENR chief also stressed that the penalty does not include possible penalties for violation of Clean Water Act and its Environmental Compliance Certificate.
Meanwhile, Paje said that they are now closely coordinating with Philex to assure that there will be no repeat of the incident, noting that the company was able to immediately contain the spill and stopped further damage in surrounding areas.
“There was no extensive damage to natural resources in the vicinity of the mine. The spillage is big but the damage is not that big because of immediate measures,” he said.
Leo Jasareno, Mines and Geosciences Bureau chief, said that they have completed their investigation, adding that they expect to come up with a formal report by next week.
Lawyer Mike Toledo, Philex senior vice-president for corporate affairs, said that the company is ready to accept the penalty to be imposed by the DENR, but said that they still have to wait for the official notification.
“We do not know yet since I believe that it is still under assessment, so probably they haven’t reached us yet since the study is still ongoing,” he said.
He also said that they will do their own assessment of the situation once they receive the letter. Earlier, the MGB ordered the suspension of all mining operations at Philex’s Padcal mine in Tuba, Benguet until such time that the integrity and safety of its tailing pond has been assured.
The dam is situated at about 30 kilometers downstream of Agno River from its convergence with Balog River. The drain tunnels of Philex discharge their water load into the Balog River that, in turn, runs for about 2.5 kilometers to converge with Agno River.
Manuel Pangilinan, Philex chairman and chief executive, said that the company has taken out a $50 million environmental insurance and $30 million business interruption insurance to help restore the integrity of the tailings pond and rehabilitate affected areas of the leak.
JAMES KONSTANTIN GALVEZ