ECCS of 4 mining firms suspended

Environment Secretary Gina Lopez has suspended the environmental compliance certificates (ECCs) of four mining firms in Palawan and Davao provinces.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) canceled the ECCs of the Ipilan and Lebach nickel mining projects, both in Barangay Ipilan in Palawan, though the projects have yet to begin, primarily because the ECCs had already lapsed without being used.

Lopez also noted that the projects were located in a “biodiverse” area.

The ECCs for the Core Mining Corp. mining project in Lopon, Davao, and the Austral Asia mining site in Mati, Davao were also canceled.

Lopez noted that the Austral Asia site was located in between “two heritage sites” in Davao—a bonsai forest and a cove. “We have sent people for a biodiversity assessment, and the place has tremendous biodiversity, which, when explored and nurtured can transform that area in an economic zone,” she said. —JAYMEE T. GAMIL