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MEI Online: Commodities: Metallic Ores: Gold: Latest News: April 2nd 2019

 
 

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:: DENR Shuts Down Diwalwal Gold Plants

 

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) shut down more than 300 gold processing plants on Mt. Diwalwal in Monkayo, Compostela Valley two weekends ago.

More than 200 personnel from DENR, the military and police were dispatched to Diwalwal to enforce the cease-and-desist orders. As per DENR XI records, a total of 1,797 ballmills and 31 carbon-in-pulp tanks have been shut down.

Dubbed as “Lihok Alang sa Naboc,” the transfer of gold-ore-crushing and processing facilities to the Mineral Processing Zone in Barangay Mabatas, also in Monkayo, was necessary to staunch the pollution of the Naboc River with mercury and other contaminants, said DENR Assistant Secretary Ruth Tawantawan.

The Mineral Processing Zone in Barangay Mabatas has a tailings containment facility. “We need to rehabilitate Naboc River from the contamination of pollutants particularly mercury and we also discovered presence of fecal coliform beyond government standard,” Tawantawan said. Naboc River, an important source of water for farming in the province

Monkayo Mayor Ramil Gentugaya has not issued business permits to the mining plants in support of the DENR closure orders. “This year, wala ko naghatag ug permits sa tanang mga ballmill and CIP na planta because of the (notice of) violations issued by MGB and EMB,” Gentugaya said. (For this year, I did not give permits to all the ballmills and CIP plants because of the notice of violations issued by the MGB and EMB.)

Despite the start of enforcement of CDOs, some plant owners remained hopeful that the deadline for relocation would be extended. “Mohangyo unta ko sa DENR na okay man mi mobalhin sa Mabatas pero kaning mga gagmay namong sinako, amoa sang i-clearing kay naa man pud nay bulawan na makuha,” Edgardo Bayawa, one of the gold processing plant operators in Diwawal, told the media. (Since I am amenable to transfer to Mabatas, I would like to request DENR to allow me to clear those small bags because we can still get gold from it.)

The requests, however, had no merit considering that they had been given enough time already since October 2017, according to Tawantawan. “Pinagbigyan natin sila kasi we need to address also the basic services they would be needing in the transfer site,” she said. “So meron nang water. Meron nang roads. Meron nang electricity. Walang nang rason na dili magtransfer.” (We had already given in to their requests because we had to address the basic services they would be needing in the transfer site. Now, there is already water. There are roads. There is electricity. There is no more reason why they will not transfer.)

With the closure, Barangay Captain Pedro Samillano appealed to the national government to give assistance to the affected residents. In response, the Department of Social Welfare and Development committed to implement food for work program in Diwalwal.

 

 

   

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