QUEZON CITY -- Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) OIC Secretary Jim O. Sampulna assured the residents of South Cotabato that the national government will respect the outcome of the public hearing called by the provincial board on the proposed amendments to the Environment Code, specifically on the provision lifting the ban on open-pit mining in the municipality of Tampakan.
 
Sampulna was invited by South Cotabato Vice Gov. Vicente De Jesus to the multi-sectoral consultation forum in Koronadal City on February 24 to provide technical information that will help the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) members decide on whether or not to lift the ban on open-pit mining.
 
"We are here to shed light upon the invitation of Vice Governor Vicente De Jesus," Sampulna said before the audience-packed auditorium representing all concerned sectors, including all the mayors in the province and former board members who framed the ordinance.
 
"We respect your rights," the DENR chief said, while he assured stakeholders that the general good of the people of South Cotabato is of utmost importance to the provincial government.
 
"On the legality of the provincial ordinance, it is well settled that ordinances enacted by virtue of the general welfare clause are valid," Sampulna explained.
 
He expressed optimism that the DENR could contribute to a better appreciation of the advantages and disadvantages of the project, as well as help the SP members reach an informed decision when they cast their respective votes.
 
De Jesus, who also sits as the SP’s presiding officer, said the board unanimously agreed to conduct the public hearing before voting for amendments on the provisions of Ordinance 04, Series of 2010, entitled “An Ordinance Providing for the Environment Code of the Province of South Cotabato."
 
The ordinance was approved on June 9, 2010. It was affirmed by the SP on June 30, 2015, through the "South Cotabato Environment Code" or "A Resolution Affirming the Validity of Section 22(b) of Ordinance No. 04 Series of 2010."
 
Sampulna was joined by DENR-Mines and Geosciences Bureau Director Wilfredo Moncano, DENR-Environmental Management Bureau Director William Cuñado, and DENR-Region 12 Executive Director Felix Alicer during the consultation forum on February 24.
 
A public hearing was also held on February 18 in Tampakan town, which hosts the multi-billion-peso gold-copper project touted as the largest undeveloped copper and gold mine in Southeast Asia.
 
The Tampakan project of the Sagittarius Mines Incorporated or SMI has the potential to yield an average of 375,000 tons of copper and 360,000 ounces of gold in concentrate per annum over the proposed 17-year life of the mine. (DENR)