Mining chamber seeks full disclosure of audit

M“As far as I know it’s against the law. It’s against social justice, it’s against the constitution. He (Duterte) said ‘I agree there should be no mining in watersheds,’” Lopez said. COMP, however, said mining companies will want to see that standardized tests as prescribed by law were done covering air and water quality, siltation and solid waste management.

that these tests were conducted in each mining company and the spe - pension or closure,” Disini said. The chamber is asking for these in the spirit of fairness and transparency.

“We continue to subscribe by President Rodrigo Duterte’s marching orders that we could mine for as long as we follow the law and uphold to the highest regard the tenets of responsible mining,” Disini said.

Earlier, Lopez said the mining audit was fair and within the law and that she did it to protect the present and future generations as enshrined in the Mining Law and the Philippine Constitution.

The audit results were criticized by the mining sector, claiming the audit lacked due process and would lead to loss of employment and livelihood in affected communities. The closures would result in loss of tax revenues against local governments and the national coffers.

Lopez vowed that within two years she will prove that a green economy can create more jobs than mining could ever create.

While mining has indeed created economic development could be achieved without destroying the environment and causing the people to suffer, and that an inclusive green economy is way better an alternative to mining.

The issue is social justice and not mining, she said. At the end of the day, Lopez said she had “to make the decisions based on truth, service and the common good.”

Lopez earlier said she lacked technical knowledge of the mining industry, but the closure and suspension orders were done “to protect the present and future generations.”

- start, Lopez said she did not know about the technicalities of mining and relied on “someone who has the common good in his heart,” which happened to be former Mines and Geosciences Bureau Director Leo Jasareno.