The knowledge.
KNOWLEDGE ON ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE (ECC)
MINDORO NICKEL PROJECT
MINDORO, PHILIPPINES
ECC OF MNP WAS DONE IN REAL AND IN TRUE LONG PROCESS.
MNP-INTEX IS ONE OF THE FEW EXCEPTIONAL ENTITIES EVER DONE THIS
PROCESS IN DETAIL, DEMOCRATIC AND TRANSPARENT WAY.
WE ACKNOWLEDGE THE EFFORT OF THE DENR
AND THE AGENCIES UNDER IT: THE MGB
AND THE EMB
BUT THE TRUTH IS TWISTED
LOCAL LGU AND CATHOLICS DO THE TWISTING.
CAN THEY BE THE BEAST & HARLOTS IN THE
LOCAL SCENE PLAYING FALSEHOOD?
(THE BIBLE)
Pedro P. Paqueo Jr.
November 2009
I beg everyone, this piece is personal. I just want fair and true information to all. This piece is only one of the many truths in Mindoro. This is in response to all journals and the CBCP-CFFI open letter. Please, I acted on my right to information, right to air ideas and right to be heard.
The Writer: Resident and Registered Voter of Victoria Occidental Mindoro,
Licensed Professional Forester, Metallurgist, Professed Roman Catholic
- Co-Preparer, Guitran Watershed Characterization, Dumigag Zamboanga del Sur, 2005.
- Co-Preparer, Dipolo Watershed Characterization, Dumiggag, Zamboanga del Sur, 2005
- Policy Preparer, Pagadian Environment and Natural Resources Sector, 1993-2000
- With Forester Joseph Fuerzas, co-authored the Vegetation and Ecology of Lateritic Mountains of Claver Surigao del Norte (Forestry undergraduate thesis, 1990 unpublished).
PREFACE
I. INTRODUCTION
II. THE MATERIALS OF LIFE FROM GOD THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IS ABHORING CAUSES THE UNDERDEVELOPMENT OF MINDORO
III. PERSONAL EXPERIENCE FROM EDU AND OTHER PRIESTS (CCA Experience)
IV. THE NICKEL MINING AND PROCESSING
V. THE ECC PROCESS OF EMB FOR MNP WHERE THE CHURCH AND POLITICIAN ACTED BEAST AND HARLOTS
VI. ANWERS ON SOME POINTS MNP OPPOSITIONS
PREFACE
I beg everyone, this piece is personal. All the sentiments are mine. No other person, entities to blame. I respectfully ask for my right to air my sentiment. I am so sorry. I am just human airing my sadness.
I am not supposed to write for I am not a good writer, and I may hurt people. My conviction is that I am only limited to learn and document only to my own the things significant to the development of humanity (my family, the community, the nation, and races of earth) with full truth and knowledge in God.
But in every event of peoples’ error I neglected to air, I felt and see that I hurt more people. Again God forbid hurting people. I come to a decision that I have to air things only if I hurt less people (we need to uphold the stake of majority). But for those few people I may hurt, I beg forgiveness from them. Lord, forgive me, for the things I write may pierce people, even your people.
To my Brother Jones Teresito P. Paqueo, a Missionary Jesuit Priest serving Agusan del Sur and Central Luzon, I am sorry for this piece. Although you are now in Texas, USA serving a Parish there, I need to inform you of my position on development. Although this is a long piece but it only reflects a small portion of my Mindoro experiences. I’m sorry I struck the Church. But I pray the church will still accept me. My Church may change and may be intelligent of every issue at objectivity, and take the most reasonable, logical inquiry. God stays at the logic of Law, even the Supreme Law.
My objective in this and in future letters is to record and show things I observed as facts and reflect the true knowledge on issues, reflect science and reflect true faith in God. Science is a tool to know more the Creator and enhance our relation to Him and to the humanity (read more science books and Bible). Science is a tool that God allow for us to know his creations, that includes humanity. This writing may only show few things regarding Public Hearing in Pola and other sites. The Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) and may be the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) may have it full. But at least this little one may augment the EMB information report to establish that the ECC process was true and that the information and plan may even be improve if parties are peacefully joining to discuss, further hammer, explore systems/measures/ initiatives to polish the nickel project proposal to benefit the largest population of Mindoro while enhancing the general environment and generate revenues to further assist the Local Sustainable Community Development Initiatives.
In this temporal human age, my life philosophy for a farm given to me by God through any instrumentalities is to cultivate that farm not only for my livelihood but make that farm the source of livelihood for many while waiting for the supreme author to come.
The issue on Mindoro Nickel Project (MNP) that lambasted the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in the most unfair and very derogatory way is: Nabayaran ng malaki ang DENR Dahil naibigay na ang ECC ng MNP-Intex (the DENR received much money because the ECC had been issued) Death for DENR Secretary and Death for Intex was symbolized by parading a coffin in their Calapan City rally on Nov. 1, 2009. The opposing persons and entities with comments and writings in the national journals radio and television wanted the DENR Secretary to step down are Edu Gariguez, Alamin, almost all Mindoro Priests, the CBCP-CFFI head Broderick Pabillo. These persons/entities struck even the President of the Republic. More or less these are the contents or the implied information of all journals/newspaper in the Philippines beginning the month of November 2009 relative to MNP.
One of the truths is contained in the document write up of Pedro P. Paqueo Jr. in the May 14, 2009 event of Pola, Oriental Mindoro (there may be other sources, the most legitimate was Mayor Aranas of Pola and the People of Pola). All of the accusations of Edu Gariguez, the Alamin and the priests are false, and the opposing parties are all hypocrites. The church now is a den of liars, and lies spewed everywhere, even global. Until the church will not correct its body he is unto destruction but certainly Christian Faith remains and grows fervent. (Read item Roman Numeral V – ECC process ….)
My church, are you really of Christ or Satan. Please look back and project again. Align everything to Christ or else your Angel will be removed from you. My Church please read the first five pages of the Bible, Book of Revelation. It talks about the Churches in the End of Times. Can you find your sector there and take reproof? If you are not there then you are of Satan.
Mindoro, the development benefit of your resources is for you. However, even as dogs eat the excess food falling down from the table of their lord, we pray and beg to receive out from the small portion of the abundance that God give to you. God’s blessings abound in you and unto your generations until the Great Author comes. Can some people share a portion of it? Can other bodies be your partners? Anyway as God provides, some interested and intelligent bodies in the Philippines and abroad may help you build your sustained development, emancipate you from poverty and ensure your food security. Can you and other bodies discuss sustainable development matters and ask Lords guidance for development agreements? If information, knowledge at your end is lacking, you may propose to sit down for focus and continuing education on projects and your development. We have the Philippine Laws, the International Agreements on Conducting Business and the International Standards in Development Projects/Programs and activities.
Mindoreno, you have your right to development. The decision is yours. Probably you may need to have more knowledge to approach the right decision. God gives you the right to choose. You may reach out, accept and weigh knowledge and information true or not, bad or good, and decide for truth and good.
For truth MNP reach out one on one to more than 15,000 Mindoreno in nickel mining and processing education and consultation for some hundreds sessions. MNP gathered support signatures reaching 70,000 people. MNP is continuing its program on social development consultations to cover impact and host areas in preparing their local plans which shall be a reference in the implementation of social development and management program, environmental protection and enhancement program, and decommissioning and final rehabilitation plan. Besides, the local income may improve (from Tax and IRA), thus sustainable investment initiative may directly be referred to the prepared local plans (20, 10, 5 yr plans).
I. INTRODUCTION
The ECC of the Mindoro Nickel Project was issued late October 2009. But the pre-ECC activities began November 2006. The exploration activities, geological resource studies, initial IEC and social consultations resumed on late 2006. The comprehensive information education and communications resumed 2007, the social and environmental studies which were done as part of the pre-ECC activities resumed 2007. The term resume is use is to convey that things were done with ample time. Note that all activities begun 1998 suspended on 2002, MPSA reinstated on November 2005 and resumed 2006, By Jan 2008, things was prepared for ECC process.
The FPIC as Parallel Requirement of ECC in Ancestral Lands
The Free Prior Informed Consent (FPIC), a parallel requirement of the ECC for the MNP was processed by the facilitation of the National Commission on Indigenous People on July 3, 2008. Preparatory activities for it were done on years 2000, 2006 and 2007. FPIC is a requirement for any project located in ancestral land, and the MNP is in the ancestral land/CADT of Alangan-Mangyan. Late of 2008 the same was issued by the NCIP. The mangyan groups with agreement to the Intex are the Sadaki-Alangan and Kabilogan (Bangon-Tadyawan and Alangan ancestry lines). I have to include this to show that time was really spent and requisites were approach as the law directed to show that process were done and transparency was objectively targeted. Opposing entities forgot to convey the true time spent with executed activities to fix the ECC process. I didn’t imply they are lying. I just convey practice of responsible and mature execution of the demand of their job. I am trying to see the proposing and opposing parties to have tangent even in few points. After all, and I suppose that the objective of every party is to emancipate the Mindoreno from poverty, help them plan their needed change- a meaningful and sustainable development of the disadvantage sector of Mindoro, i.e., meals three times a day, safe dwelling, safe water, education of children, health and life security, and freedom in faith.
Contract of Experts
In midyear of 2007, Golders International (Australian Base Development Consultants) was contracted by Intex to handle industrial/mineral development planning stages in accordance to international standard and best practices. At the start of 2008 Lichel Technologies Inc. was contracted to facilitate the conduct of environmental baseline studies, to document other important socio and economic baselines (the company not previously captured) as bases of figuring concerns and discussion of solutions of the project issues and other needs of the ECC process. Sectors' information education and communication prior the FPIC (on July 3, 2008) and ECC process was done continuously since February 2007 as one of the conditions of MPSA in its reinstatement on November 2005.
The project scoping in Villa Cerveza of municipality of Victoria (Oct 20 2008), the three separate public hearings in Pola (May 14, 2009), Maburao (May 27 2009) and Sta. Cruz (June 15, 2009) were conducted by the DENR. Approximately a total of 20 months was spent to the ECC ground process by Intex. It’s an expectation that the Intex work allocation period is much greater than the DENR ECC process period due to the necessary pre-activities such as IEC and related socio-economic and environmental baseline studies. The time table of DENR is only 120 to 140 days. Then the ECC was signed late October 2009.
I may miss things, but roughly that was the whole event prior attending the ECC process and end up to the issuance of the ECC. Even the most isolated person probably knows the heated issue of the proposed development of nickel mining and processing. Even a youth born on 1998 who is eleven years old by now knew Mindoro Nickel Project. With that given eleven years of information giving, receiving, academic and layman’s terms discussions, researches and analyses, and activity reports submission to the DENR-MGB (since miners are just contractors of the Philippine Government in the implementation of RA 7942) would there be any railroading of process? For real we got eleven years of professional work contracting for the objective of RA 7942, thereby the term railroading misfits.
II. THE MATERIALS OF LIFE FROM GOD THAT SOME CATHOLICS ABHORED FOR DEVELOPMENT, THE SAME CAUSES THE ECONOMIC RETROGRESSION OF MINDORO, HUNGER OF THE MARGINAL SECTOR AND PSYCHOLOGICAL PAINFUL REST OF THE POOREST SECTOR, THE MOST VULNERABLE ARE WOMEN AND CHILDREN AND MANGYAN.
Fifty nine years Mindoro strived in agriculture. It cleared, destroyed and burned hundreds of thousand of hectares of flatlands, flood plains, wetlands and hilly lands for monocropping of rice, corn, coconut, banana, fruits etc. The poorest sector of Mindorenos even subsist (make kaingin agriculture) in hundreds of thousands of upland, and continuously engage in charcoal making for a cash just to approach 2-3 meals a day (the charcoal use by the people of Manila comes form Mindoro). Now it comes to a point that the agricultural activities of Mindoro that don’t have mitigating measures nosedive to cyclic poverty. What was done? This question is for all of us: we elders, leaders and priests, what had we done for about fifty nine years? Had we only collected tax and tithes without giving knowledge to the farmers on their responsibilities to the land? You only fattened yourselves, while the marginal Mindorenos cornered to extreme poverty due to declining productivity and non availability of alternative livelihood, all of which are directly proportional to land irresponsible use, your previous and current agricultural practices.
Had you planted hundreds of thousands of trees or germinated millions of tree seeds and grown tree seedlings for people to plant and harvest to initiate material and energy cycle while reaping an income? Had you facilitated/guided constructing rice bench terraces for the sustainable food of poor upland people so that they no longer subsist or make kaingin and charcoal making? If you ask me back these two lines certainly I have done them. But you, you had done nothing.
Alas, here comes a scientific system of resource use, sustainable wealth generation and environmental enhancement, i.e., mineral and industrial development. But the priest abhorred it. Why abhor where in fact you priest will be benefited from the personal contribution (tithes) of the industry-working class who will listen to your evangelism works? And since time immemorial you reap that benefits. If you are doing things for God in faith to his Son Jesus you will live on it for a while. If you are doing things for Satan you will also live on it for a while. But when Divine Judgment comes, you will independently stand on your works. Respective counsels stand and people are judged: Christ the counsel for the people working in God’s precepts, and Satan for people working in Lucifers precepts (lies lies, lies, 666).
God give everyone of us the talent for each to harnessed and use in the development of man and approach God system of happy living. We are now at the end of times, yet you priest still sow confusion to the people and divide their faith. Please look back and have ample reproof or if you still sow statements which are baseless, void of scientific, experiential and true knowledge then you lead the people to confusion like the 666. Are you part of it or are you that number?
And you local government units why did you married your ideas with the baseless ideas of some nonsense priests? What if the internal revenue allotment will be removed from you? Remember my tax contributed to it. I can curse you with my sweat and blood. The entire nation will condemn you. You use the Mining Moratorium as a paralegal paper to disburse tax money in nonsense antimining rally so that your name will float and you will be known politically (much better if you had done it in poverty alleviation planning and hillside terracing for the food security of poor people and mangyan). It’s the second gravest sin next to denying Jesus. Look back and take reproof or you will go to eternal fire.
The materials and energy resources are given by God to Man through Christ and not to Satan through Church. Remember Church and Christ are very different in any terms. Christ is a personal being and Church is an organizational being. Therefore a church leader must walk as Christ walked, must act as Christ acted, share materials and resources as Christ shared. But why when somebody shared scientific knowledge and resources the Catholic Church and its Priests condemn them. If that is their stand then let their statement of condemnation befall on themselves.
The nickel deposit in Mindoro is located in Villa Cerveza, Victoria Oriental Mindoro, Pag-asa and San Agustin Sablayan Occidental Mindoro. It has an approximate land area of 11,000 ha. The material volume is world class that will change Mindoro from agriculture base to industrial base economy, creating jobs additional or alternative to agriculture jobs.
The hills and mountains the nickel tenement is located is not declared by law in the Philippine Congress as critical watershed. Although ~70% of the area belongs to Sablayan, yet the mountains’ generals aspects and terrain orient toward east making all the rainwater drain to Aglubang and Ibolo rivers (non to the west/occidental) converging as one named as Mag-asawang Tubig River in Villa Cerveza. The Whole watershed (upland to coastal) is more or less 42,000 ha (needing ground delineation to determine for certainty). Please study closely the watershed map (even on the ground) and define the contour, crenulations, ridges, slope gradient, aspects, soil (highly mineralized, clay, non clay,), geologic layering and drainage characteristics, or else nobody should say watershed if you don’t have the knowledge of it. All must refer to the License Forester or Watershed Scientist not just to anybody.
Remember also that to impose strict public regulations of no use, a watershed must nationally be declared as critical watershed by the Act of Congress. But the Aglubang River Watershed is not declared by law as critical watershed.
Remember that limonite is clay and don’t have significant function in watershed. Alone or in mix with bentonite, it can be used as clay liner in land fill to contain leacheate, meaning rain water will not permeate and just slid off or run off destructing the mountain high slopes portion. Limonite is highly mineralized with nickel iron and cobalt, and significant magnesium has been leach out making the soil acidic and compactly bind other nutrients to the ferro-nickel silicate molecule which become not available to plant, and the plant becomes stunted and looks bush or bonsai. In the tenement, patches of lush forest are only located in the river banks, gully bottom and creeks which can be respected as buffer (non go zone) areas to be indicated in the detailed mining plan (or its equivalent). Note that mining in the new law provide buffer areas. These buffer areas can be a refuge of biodiversity, and provenance for endemic species regenerations. The very marginal vegetation in mid mountain and ridges can be grown lushly with bigger diameter forest species if limonite clay soil is removed.
III. EXPERIENCE WITH EDU GARIGUEZ AND OTHER PRIESTS (the CCA – FPIC)
Assessment on the Community Consultative Assembly for the FPIC of AMA 101 and AMA 103 of the Aglubang Mining Corporation conducted AT Feliz del Mar Beach Resort in Sablayan Occidental Mindoro on July 3, 2008. (this event has video cam record, and audio record of the NCIP)
1. General Assessment
- The whole process was successful and peaceful even at the presence of Antimining and promining parties. Even at the hot languages of antimining, the subject communities and pro mining party was cool and calm.
- The subject communities listened to the exchange of ideas
- The antimining parties were at offending behavior throughout the Community Consultative Assembly .
- The IRPI team was cool and calm.
- The NCIP stood at their authority and mandate.
- The subject community, SADAKI lead by Ramil Baldo was cool and calm and decided singly on their stand and to their right to their ancestral land.
- The KMI headed by Daniel Cabo, represented by outspoken Mario Haba, supported the SADAKI on their stand and on their rights to their ancestral domain. The KMI also, singly pronounce their right to their ancestral domain adjacent to the SADAKI Alangan ancestral land occupancy.
- The KMI and SADAKI are united and ready to make decision for the mining to operate with an agreement in the absence of ADSDPP. The just want pure culture and no intervention assembly – the consensus.
· Central Event Important to the occupants of the ancestral land where the tenement is located:
The subject communities (Mangyan-Alangan SADAKI, with the supporting mother cultural organization, the Mangyan KMI) upon hearing the attending parties on their knowledge, views and concerns relative to the FPIC of AMA 101 and AMA 103 of which the location is their ancestral land occupancy, declared and pushed their rights to their ancestral domain. At the end of the community assembly, they demanded their right to decide without any intervention. They subject community is now ready for Consensus Building.
The subject community was supported morally by the BLGUs of Villa Cerveza, Alcate, Bagong Buhay, and Antonino from the Municipality of Victoria, Oriental Mindoro.
They subject community, and the entire event were guided legally by the NCIP.
2. Capsulated Event of the Community Assembly process:
Quoted from the Open Forum
10 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Ramil Baldo
Group Name: Alangan
Position: Cultural Leader, Elder, Chairman SADAKI
Location: Candido, Villa Cerveza, Oriental Mindoro
Occupant in the location of AMA 101 and AMA 103 of AMC
Tanong ko sa NICP: Tribo ba ang may karapatan o ang mga tao na Mangyan Alangan at Samahan na talagang nasa lugar?
Sagot NCIP: Ang magdesisyon ay yong apektado na lugar lamang. Kung mayroon 100 doon sa lugar, yong 100 lang ang magdesisyon.
Ramil: Ako’y manindigan po sa Samahan ng SADAKI. Nagkaisa Kami. Malinaw ito sa batas: ang tao, kami, basi sa batas IPRA ay may karapatan magdesisyon sa aming lupain.
Mario: Magandang hapon sa lahat. Kami po mismo ang mga tao nandoon sa lugar. Ang pinag-uusapan na lugar ay doon kami. Bigyan kami, na nasa lugar, ng aming sasabihin, puwede ba?
NCIP: Ang magbigay ng `consent ay yon talagang nasa lugar na tukoy.
The subject community heard the legal opinions and knowledge from NCIP and MGB relative to their resource and their rights over their ancestral domain. They also absorb ideas from the people attending the consultation process.
The Antimining group did their part convincing the subject cultural communities in the location of AMA 101 and AMA 103 not to give their decision/consensus to the AMC for the said AMA numbered documents. The NCIP did their best: democratic process and legal knowledge was the foremost excellent, defeating those ideas, sentiments and decision far from the law.
3. Event Unusual Situation Observed.
Observation:
There were forum misbehaviors of the Mangyan Mission Team Lead by Edwin Gariguez. Their language, voice tune, idea direction were hurting and heart piercing. Their behavior hurt the Mangyan in the subject location, and created bad personality conclusion to the antimining themselves (said the attending BLGUs from Victoria).
One observed was Priest Jun Villanueva who was behaving not as a church figure. His voice was strong, heavy and intimidating. He was murmuring going around the venue hall and spoke bad words. In his culminating tense he inserted unrecognized when Forester Pet Cansino and Andy Pestano answered that the disadvantages of mining can be studied and be given with solutions following the ethics of resource management – responsible mining. He said, “Hindi ako naniniwala sa responsible mining!! Maraming mina nakita namin sira!!”.
Another true personal experience of misbehavior of the Mangyan Mission was the event when Edu Gariguez asked Pedro Paqueo 3 times for a soft copy of the Map of the Alangan CADT (of which the survey was done by the NCIP) – Pedro handed the computer operation on the project presentation of the Intex. Pedro was sitting and attending the laptop and projector at the table immediate at his front. Edu approaches him and said can you give me a soft copy of the map? At first his voice was soft. At the second and the third time his voice tune and weight became hurting. He burst and shouted in the forum: Look everybody, he will not give me a soft copy of the map. This is a public document, we have right to those presentations. It is our map. Why he will not give me a copy?!!! Why he will not give me a copy?!!!
He only calmed down and withdrew from the front of Pedro when Jing Bantayan caught his attention saying: Huwag mong Bastusin ang Kasama namin.
Edu was not denied of a soft copy of the map, instead Pedro requested Edu to get permission from the NCIP and the presentor 3 times in respond to his 3 repeated request: Sir puwede humingi po kayo ng pahintulot doon sa presidential table sa NCIP at presentor?; sir doon po sa kanila sa NCIP at sa may-ari ng presentation; doon po sa NCIP at kay Sir Andy, ang authority po ng impormasyon na kukunin mo ay sa kanila. (Sir, please get the permission from the authorities in the presidential table. Sir please asked NCIP and Andy. Sir, please, the authority of information is from them).
Instantly, the ego of Edu burst (Sumabog si Edu at sumigaw)
And Pedro just stared at him (Edu) on the total period of his shouting. Pedro did not mind it, instead, he treated/recorded it as part of the process: “there are fine forum and, also, there are hurting forum”. “In any event, as long as the services were extended, the works were done and everybody participated well and in still physical order, then, that event is peacefully successful”.
At the end of the day about 5:30 PM, when Pedro secured the laptop and projector/LCD, other equipments and tools in the presentations, Edwin Gariguez asked Pedro a Sorry, Trabaho lang ito. Edu was a priest before, I guess in Maburao. Pedro remembered his younger brother who is now in a Catholic Parish of Texas Preaching the Gospel of God- a Missionary Catholic Jesuit Priest serving Sta Ines Agusan del Sur, Mindanao, and Nueva Ecija in Texas. Pedro’s younger brother lived in the shadow of danger in the remote area of Agusan in Mindanao and Nueva Viscaya, Northern Luzon. Now here is a man, Edu, of the same profile and same community service experiences with his younger brother (although with different life panorama). Pedro’s respect to his brother was well above his hurt ego. Then Pedro, said, it’s OK. We understand your temper (at trabaho din lang - its part of the job). (bulong ni Pedro sa kanyang sarili: Parte na ito sa proseso. But next time we need to hold our temper, it’s shameful we disturbed the process and intimidated IP, disrespected the Rules of Process and the NCIP).
The next pages still of FPIC are few records of the Open Forum.
Prepared by:
Paqueo, PP jr.
Note: Our video cam recorded the full event.
Activity: Community Assembly for the FPIC of AMA 101 and AMA 103 of Aglubang Mining Corporation Situated at eastern tip of the Alangan CADT, Pag-asa, Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro
Venue: Feliz de Mar Beach Resort, Sabalayan Occidental Mindoro
Invited, Attending Parties and Individual:
· The NCIP as the legal guide and facilitator
- Atty. Restor, NCIP legal officer and party (NCIP Regional personnel, NCIP Provincial personnel headed by Bing Eder, and NCIP District personnel headed by Eden Cenon were in full force)
· Occidental Mindoro personalities (all against mining)
- Sablayan Mayor Mintu
- Sablayan Vice Mayor Gadiano
- Ms. Crisilda - Mangyan Mission
- Mr. Sanoton - BCP Chair –
- Mr. Vincent Gahol – Representative of the Municipal Mayor of Victoria
- Pascual
- Father Zalazar
- Monsenior Jun Villanueva
- Father Edwin with the team Mangyan Mission of San Jose
- Joey Liwanag, Barangay Victoria
· Occidental Mindoro personalities (neutral or pro to the mining issue)
- Mayor Onyo Calamita and party (8 Capitanes ng Alangan pamayanan of Pag-asa and San Agustin, and 1 Capitan of Alangan pamayanan in Sta Cruz)
Mayor Onyo Calamita is the Cultural Leader of Alangan Mangyan with Leadership and High Elder Respect Domain from the Alangan of Occidental Mindoro and Alangan Oriental Mindoro. (isa sa pipirma sa Alangan CADT Map/document)
· Doñano Habangbuhay
- Chairman SASAMA (isa sa pipirma sa Alangan CADT Map/document)
Elder Alangan, San Agustin Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro
The Oriental Team
- BLGU officials of Villa Cerveza, Victoria Oriental Mindoro (5 man team)
- BLGU officials of Alcate, Victoria, Oriental Mindoro (5 man team)
- BLGU officials of Bagong Buhay, Victoria, Oriental Min (5 man team)
- BLGU officials of Antonino, Victoria, Oriental Min (5 man team)
The Subject Mangyan Communities
- Ramil Baldo (isa sa pipirma sa Alangan CADT /document)
Chairman SADAKI
- SADAKI Alangan team (44 man team) lead by Elder and Chairman Ramil Baldo
- Daniel Cabo (isa sa pipirma sa Alangan CADT/document)
Elder KMI
- KMI (35 man team) lead by Elder and Chairman Daniel Cabo
- KASAKA Alangan Mangyan, Libagon, San Agustin, Sabalayan Occ Min
The Applicant (AMC / IRPI)
- Envi Team (Forester Pet Cansino & Company)
- Geologs Team (Engineer Ed Manuel & Company)
- CREDO (Andy Pestano & Company) in full force
The Assembly started 8:30 AM and ended late 5 PM.
Mechanics:
Prayer – Lead by Pastor Daniel Cabo
National Anthem –
Introduction of Pax – facilitated by Eden Babatla
Introduction of the Subject (FPIC appl for: AMA 101, and AMA103) facilitated by Eden Cenon
Statements of Antimining Team - facilitated by Eden Cenon: Anti mining group proceeded first with full sentiment and language, and occupy the time approximately 1.5 hours in the morning session.
Statement of the NCIP Legal Officer, Atty Restor
Presentation of SDMP Experience of the Palawan Nickel Mining (reference of everybody to understand the Mindoro Nickel Project (by Director De Jesus).
Presentation of Intex Resources Philippines Incorporated of the Mindoro Nickel Project (Andy, Pet, Ed) approximately 1.5 hours in the afternoon.
Open Forum (question and answer) – facilitated by Eden Cenon and Teddy
THE OPEN FORUM
House Rules in Raising Question
- 1. Pax raise hand
- 2. Facilitator shall recognize him/her
- 3. The recognized pax shall identify himself/herself as follows: name, tribe, position, address.
- 4. Mention the name of person institution to which his question is directed.
House Rules to answer a question
- If the institution presents information as a team, any knowledgeable individual from their line of presentor shall answer the question.
Questions:
1 – Kinikilalang magtanong
Pangalan: Albert del Rosario
Tagasaan / Lugar: Liguayan, St. Cruz
Ang tanong ay para sa INTEX:
Tanong:
Nakita ko ang kagandahan nito. Ngunit hindi ko po nakita ang negatibong pangyayari. Kasi may hindi magandang resulta kasi.
Sagot (Andy): Ano ang negatibo? Ang negatibong pangyayari dapat sabihin itanong ng maayos ng nagtatanong upang maintindihan ng lahat.
Albert: Ang ibig kung sabihin ay yong epekto ng mina. Sa pag-aaral natin nakita natin kagandahan.
Edu: - standing at hypertension and emotions at fire, inserting between Andy and Albert without the process/statement of recognition by the NCIP facilitator as a house rule in the open forum, Edu speak with a big bold voice: You should present the negative and positive, the disadvantages and advantages!!!. You are only showing the advantages!!!
Pet: recognized as part of the Intex to answer the question.
Nasa pag-aaral tayo. Ang mga sumusunod na mga posibleng epekto ay makikita sa hangin (abu), tubig (paglabo), lupa (pagbanlas), at marami pa. Ang mga ito ay kasama sa pag-aaral o risk assessment na naisasaad sa Philippine Environmental Impact Studies System at na-ipresenta rin namin.
Ok ba?
Albert: Hindi po sapat.
Facilitator (Teddy): Kumbaga I-project na natin ang pangyayari sa pagmimina.
Pet (Intex): Kung ang pagmimina ay gawin, ito ay gawing estable at responsible.
Patuloy ang pasagawa natin ng baseline studies na siyang basehan at dapat sundin (ng masaayos at responsabeleng pagmimina).
Halimbawa sa labo ng tubig, kasi mayroon tayong basehan may water quality monitoring tayo. At kung meron diperensya/epekto itoy gagawan ng paraan upang maibsan ang epekto base sa plano at monitor/datus. Sa hindi ang operasyon ng mina ang plano sa kalikasan ay buo na.
Father Jun: (Pumasok na walang proper recognition to insert for question sa open forum. Malakas na tinig at nasa hypertension): Ang sinasabi ng Intex ay pinag-aralan, at patuloy na pag-aaralan. Hindi ako naniniwala sa responsible mining. Marami ng minahan ang nakikita naming sira.
2 – Kinikilala na magtanong
Name: Sildo Sanutan
Tribo: Iraya
Position: PCB Chair
Place/location: Abra de Ilog
Mangyan - Iraya
Ang Tanong ay para sa NCIP.
Hindi ba dapat mauna ang CADT at ADSDPP prior sa proyekto.
Sagot, NCIP: Ang application ng pagmimina ay ”open application”. Kung Ancestral domain, ang IP ay konsultahin. Kahit ito walang pang CADT pwedeng pumasok sa isang proyekto pero sa proseso ng FPIC.
3 – kinikilala na magtanong
Name: Abraham Pedena
Tribe: Tao Buhid
Position:
Lugar: Lagutay Occ Mindoro
Dito po sa pagmimina ang katutubo, kami ay hindi sang-ayon sa mina.
(ito ay isan pagpapahayag, hindi tanong)
4 – Kinikilalang magtanong
Name: Julo Lintauyan
Tribe: Alangan
Lugar: Sta Cruz
Tanong:
- Ilang katutubo sa alangan ang kasama ninyo Intex?
- Ang FPIC ngayon lang nagyari, Bakit may mga Banga na doon. Hindi pa tapos FPIC mayroon na paglabag.
Alangan lang ba ang may trabaho?
Sagot Kahit anong tribo basta siyay magtatrabaho.
Pahayag – ayaw po talaga namin sa mina. Watakwatak na kami tribo Alangan.
Sagot ni Pet, Intex:
Yon pong tanong ng kapatid natin na kung ilang katutubo na ang sumasama sa atin sa pag-aaral at pagsusuri, yong nadoon lang sa party ng Victoria .
Clarification (from the anti mining group): Clarification doon sa banga, water tank.
Sagot ni Andy: Ang proyekto sosyal ni-refer po natin sa NCIP. Tumutugon kami / tayo sa kailangan at hiling lalo na kung ito ay malinis na tubig inumin, may pahintulot sa NCIP at Barangay Hinihiling din kasi nila ang malinis na tubig inumin.
Atty Restor: Karagdagan tanong: Kayo po ba ay nagmimina na?
Andy: Hindi pa tayo nagmimina, kung hindi tayo ay nag-explore (nagsusuri, nag-sample, nag-aaral) sa kabila-oriental. Dito sa Sablayan ay sa permit pa tayo sa ngayon, at walang pang pagmina.
Atty Restor: Yong Banga yon ba ay pagmimina?
Andy: Pagmimina kaya ang banga o ininipon natin ang tubig inumin, kumuha tayo ng graba (bato at buhangin), semento upang gawing banga o tanke sa tubig inumin.
Name: Mr. Kanyan
Tribo: Tagalog
Position: Reporter
Buenavista, Sablayan
- Kung exploration lang ito, hangang kalian tatagal?
- Kung tapos na na-explore yong nickel imonitor namin kasi no to large scale mining sa Sablayan.
Andy: Sa usaping ito, si Director De Jesus ang may authority opinion.
Dir De Jesus: Noong 2005, Sec. Reyes of DENR seek the opinion of the Department of Justice: National Law can’t be subordinate to the local law. Right now we can’t stop processing mining applications.
Atty Restor: File petition to stop mining, upang malaman kung sino-sino dapat masunod upang makatulog kayo ng mahimbig.
5 – Kinilalang magtanong
Name: Danilo Barrientos
Tribo: Tao Buhid
Location: Monteclaro, San Jose
Tanong: Bago dapat tanggap ng NCIP ay kosultasyon muna. Bakit hindi ito alam ng ilang tribo?
NCIP, Teddy: Ito na po yong ginagawa natin
6 – Kinikilala na magtanong
Name: Jose Lorenzo
Location: Sta Cruz, Occ Mindoro
Tanong para sa NCIP.
Ayon sa NCIP, para sa katutubo gagawin ninyo. Kayo pa rin nagpapasok sa taga ibang bayan?
Atty Restor: Hindi nagpapasok ang NCIP. Ito na nga yong ang pagsasabi sa inyo na sila ay papasok, at kami ay witness sa kanilang pagpapaalam sa inyo..
Atty Restor: Ito ginagawa natin ngayon ay siyang tanong sa inyo na kayo ba ay payag o hindi.
Kung payag o hindi payag, tapos.
NCIP (Teddy) : Katutubo na apektado lang po sa lugar. Ito ngayon ay naglilinaw lang po tayo.
7 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Juanito Lumarik
Tribe: Tao Buhid
Location San Jose
Magkakaanak, magkakalaban, naalarma ba kayo?
Isa bang pagsasaayos ito sa tribo?
Teddy: Tayo ngayon ay nagproseso.
Hihikayatin na talaga ang katutubo sa lugar.
Ang nagtatanong ay taga labas sa lugar.
Pero kung kayo na nasa lugar ay makikinig lang, OK lang.
8 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Sigun Junday
Tribo: Alangan
Location: Oriental Mindoro
Tanong
- Wala po ako imbitasyon dito pero gusto ko malaman kasi maaring mangyari ang baha. Bakit limitado ang imbitasyon sa mga lider?
NCIP (Teddy): Sa bahaging imbitasyon, limitado po talaga. Yong nakatukoy na lider at matatanda, kayo na nandito ngayon ang magsasabi doon sa hindi nakadalo sa pag-uwi ninyo.
Tanong
Ang pagpupulong para sa pagdesisyon ay doon komunidad gagawin?.
Sagot NCIP: Doon po.
Eden: Ang katutubo sa lugar hinikayat kong magtanong.
9 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Lubin Darong
Tribo:
Location/Lugar: Sta Cruz
Tanong: Kinakailangan mabigyan ng pansin. Ang NCIP ba ay suportado ng mina?
NCIP: Ang AMC ay nag-apply ng FPIC. Ito ay dadana sa proseso. Ito ay may laan na pundo base sa batas at yan ang suporta. Kung ano ang gusto ninyo yon ang gusto namin.
10 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Ramil Baldo
Tribe: Alangan
Position: Cultural Leader, Elder, Chairman SADAKI
Location: Kisluyan, Villa Cerveza, Oriental Mindoro
Occupant in the site/location of AMA 101 and AMA 103 of AMC
Tanong: Tribo ba ang may karapatan o ang mga tao na Mangyan Alangan at Samahan na talagang nasa lugar?
Sagot NCIP: Ang magdesisyon ay yong apektado na lugar lamang. Kung mayroon 100 doon sa lugar yong 100 lang ang magdesisyon.
Ramil: Akoy manindigan po sa Samahan ng SADAKI. Nagkaisa Kami. Malinaw ito sa batas: ang tao, kami, basi sa batas IPRA ay may karapatan magdesisyon.
Mario: Magandang hapon sa lahat. Kami po mismo ang mag tao nandoon sa lugar. Ang pinag-uusapan na lugar ay doon kami. Bigyan kami, na nasa lugar, ng aming sasabihin, puwede ba?
NCIP: Ang magbigay ng `consent ay yon talagang nasa lugar na tukoy.
11 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Father Tonton
Location: Mamburao
Tanong: Ito po ba FPIC ay explorasyon o operasyon?
Bawat isa ay makapagpasiya. Kaya nasabi ba ang lahat ng masama at lahat ng mabuti sa mina?
Papayag ba kayo kung ano ang mangyari?
12 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Sister Joy
Org: Mangyan Mission, SASAMA
Location: San Jose
Tanong: a) Sa CADT magkano ba ang gastos pagsuri sa Alangan CADT?. Kung may gastos kayo INTEX may gastos din kami (Mangyan Mission) doon. Itong tanong ko ay para kay Mr. Andy.
Sagot: Andy: P2 M logistics yon
Tanong b). Explorasyon ba o operasyon.
Sagot: Lahat na hakbang proseso ay gagawin upang tuloy tuloy, at masundan ang sinabi sa batas na mga period sa explorasyon, operasyon at pagsasaayos.
Tanong: Bakit ganon ang porma ng CADT map sa Alangan, bawas ng sobra sa 2000 ha?
Sagot NCIP: Eden
Hidi tapos yong survey sa GPS noon. Sa request ng SADAKI na pasakop sa kalakihan ng CADT sa Alangan, yon ay nagawa.
Doon sa pagsusukat ang katutubo ang magtutukoy. Sila ang may alam sa kanilang lugar.
13 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Matandang Ruben
Tribe: SADAKI
Location: Kisluyan, Villa Cerveza Oriental Mindoro
Aming pinapayagan ang pagsasample. Hindi naman ito nakaapekto sa amin.
Tanong: Kung katulad ito ngayon maraming tao nakikialam, hindi kami makapagdesisyon.
Sagut: (NCIP) - Doon na po sa inyong lugar gagawa kayo ng desisyon.
Mario: - nakakalito sa katutubo kung lahok lahok. Kailangan puro lang katutubo.
14 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Virginia Maligaya
Tribe, Org: Mangyan Mission
Location: Alcate, Victoria, Oriental Mindoro
Tanong: - Akoy nandoon sa explorasyon. Kabilogan at SADAKI, ito lang po ba ang dalhin ng NCIP doon sa FPIC?
- Paano yong nasa loob? Puwede sila sa lider.
- Ako nasa lugar. Ano ang kaabalahan ko doon sa lupa
15 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Mangyan Mission:
Location: San Jose
Tanong : Yong negatibo?
Sagot (Andy): Lahat ng negatibo ay pag-aaralan. Pag-aaralan din ang bawat solusyon
Isyo ng lason. Pinag-aralan natin ang tubig lalo na sa dagat at ilog malapit sa dagat may mga eksperto/scientist tayo na gumagalaw na. Nang sa ganon sa ngayon pa lang matingnan natin ang deperensya, may basehan tayo sa magiging deperenysa at magawan na ngayon agad ng plano ng puwedeng isagawa sa panahon ng operasyon. Kung ang plano ay may kakulangan at depekto. Huwag ninyong payagan ang mina at proseso nito.
Sagradong Lugar.
Ang mga mangyan ang nagtukoy sa mga sagradong lugar sa plano na ang mga ito ay iwasan. May kosultasyon sa mga naninirahan doon. Kung ang plano ay di sapat o kulang huwag payagan.
16 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Sister Rose (Matanda):
Location: San Jose
Issue niya:
- Epekto ng moratorium
- Imbitasyon sa pagdalo – cultural process kasi hindi problema ang pundo.
- Validity ng elders. Bakit Walang Validation of Elders ngayong maraming sumasaklaw sa Alangan?
- Can we declare this event a failure?
- Ang Mapa mukhang lumampas doon sa Tao Buhid.
Sagot (NCIP) - Ang elders doon ay validated na.
- Pag-declare ng failure itong Community Consultative assembly ay failure. Hindi ito failure. Itoy dinaluhan ng mga tukoy na mga tao doon sa aplikasyon ng Aglubang Mining Corporation. Sa mga salita ng taga labas at ng applicante, sila ay may isang pakay ngayon, ang magdesisyon na sarilinan, ng sila lang, nang walang nakihalo, ng sa ganon silay hindi nalilito.
- Ang tao buhid ay may tamang sukat sa kanilang CADC na gawing CADT. Ang kakulangan sa mapa ng alangan ay okupasyon yon ng kabilogan na separate na noon ay sakop sa Alangan na mapa. Ang KMI nina Daniel Cabo na sinabi na ni Mario kanina pa ay silang yong nandoon sa lupaing iyon simulat sapol, kaya hindi sa tao buhid yon.
17 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Name: Aman Humawig
Location: Calintaan
Tanong: - Noong 2006, nagkaroon ng eksplor sa boong Mindoro. Tingnan natin ang Mapa nyo.
- Yong eksplor na yon ay walang umaatende na NCIP.
- Kung ang katabi ng alangan ay tao buhid yong naiwan na yon ay sa tao buhid yon?.
Mario (direkta nagsalita) - Mali!!, mali!!. Nandoon kami. Hindi kami saklaw sa ibang tribo. Nandoon kami. Kami ang pinapalabas ninyo na walang karapatan at walang lupa.
18 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Pangalan: Doñano Habangbuhay
Posisyon: Chairman SASAMA,
Elder, Alangan Mangyan
Lugar: Dangenan, San Agustin
Hindi puwede bawasan ang lupang ninono alangan!.
(Sinabi niya ito dahil alam niya na ang okupasyon nina ni Mario ay Hagip noon sa alangan. At Kahit itoy hindi hagip ngayon sa pinal na mapa, itoy ay nerespeto pa rin nila na ito ay sa kanilang ninono ni Cabo, Baldo, Rigrigo at iba pa sa MKI na noon ay galing sa Alangan. Kaya ang Lupaing iyon ay hindi sa Tao Buhid kundi sa Alangan nina Chairman Daniel Cabo na may gustong maging Ruwang-Alangan o Ruwang-Bangon. Ang mga ito ay nerespeto nila, kahit si Onyo Calamita na Mayor ng Alangan sa mga naunang meeting noon 2007 at 2008).
Ngayon ang aming opesina ay NCIP. Kami, ang tagapagtulong sa amin ay NCIP. Ang aming opesina ay NCIP. Kaya kami sa NCIP lang talaga.
19 – Kinikilalang Magtanong
Norman Buesan:
Sa lugar ng Ruwang nagkakasundo ang mga matanda habang nagsasample ang kumpanya. Klaro yan sa amin. Doon ay amin yon.
The NCIP close the forum at 5:15 PM. The NCIP declare the forum successful, and generally peaceful.
This is only the written documented portion of the Community Consultative Assembly. Other (major) portions are captured by our video cam, and audio recorders of the CREDO team (Occidental and Oriental).
.
IV. THE NICKEL MINING AND PROCESSING
The Nickel Mining.
The nickel mining is open cut terracing. Why this process? Answer- open cut terrace process will be used because the ore to be extracted is a soil clay oxide of limonite occupying upper layer of the ground, 2 to 20 meters deep. The terrace cutting of ground is an engineering measure of easy movement and minimum erosion and landslide. Immediately after extracting the valuable clay oxide limonite ore, the 1-2 meter surface soil will be returned and spread leveled, then the area will be installed with: 1) hedgerows and contour canal to safely divert the flow of rainwater towards safe/maintained drainage, 2) downgraded-slope drainage canal to safely contain the mass flow of water, 3) Soil Trap to catch granulated forms of soil regularly maintained and extracted with dirt load, 4) Siltation pond to allow settling of fine particles suspended in the water. 5) Combination rehabilitation and multi canopy layer system with the planting of fast growing nitrogen fixing brushes (flemingia, kenaf, resoni close crown in 6-9 months), forest tree crops, and agroforestry crops in layered canopy. 6) or be developed to rice terraces with provision of upland pipe irrigation system, with wind breaks and nutrient pump trees (at the vision and objective of the lot owner).
What is limonite? Limonite is a clay oxide (highly mineralized soil of fine texture, definitely not rock) of iron-nickel oxide or nickel-iron-silicon oxide hydrate. Oxide is the last phase of mineralization prior pure element composition. Therefore, sulfide related minerals basically in rocks are not along with the limonite clay soil but are in the bedrock or are previously carried to the, floodplains, and seas via the natural phenomenon of leaching and natural events of forces such as surface runoff, deep percolation, erosion and flooding.
Let me extend discussion to those natural forces that contribute to the natural phenomenon flooding (knowledge and readings can be found in natural science and in watershed science):
Flooding is a natural phenomenon that occurs in low lying portion of the terrestrial landscape. Volume of water from heavy rain and lowest elevations of the land are its basic identity. The natural forces that further sustain this phenomenon, after the upper soil at the higher elevation is saturated with water, are deep percolation and ground outflow, surface runoff, mass and erosive force of rain, and the land high slope gradient. Yes these nature forces are destructive. But if you know you are the point of direction of those forces, you need to evade from that destructive situation by applying the knowledge of elementary physics and watershed management (Igorots, the well known landscape engineers in world are masters of it). Remember high slope is unstable and easily eroded, low lying drainage, wetlands and flood plains are the direction of water to first fill and the point of destruction of flooding. But note that these natural forces are responsible in the formation of arable plains we now farmed, marshes and tidal flats. As time goes and flooding cycle proceeds, the marshes, estuaries and tidal flats will again be filled with soil and become an arable land. Just understand the thing material cycle-phenomenon so that you can adjust your life in the land God had given to you. Remember that Egypt is happy when flooding exists throughout the length of Nile River flats farms. As land is flooded for one to two months, Egypt farms become fertile and provide them food surplus. The Egyptians are intelligent and inventive in flood farm irrigation that assures food security for their population. And it happens since Egypt was founded as nation.
The Nickel Processing.
The nickel processing is extraction as nickel sulfide or nickel sulfate and refining into London Metal Exchange (LME) grade nickel product (99.8% pure). The process technology is High Pressure Acid Leach (a hydrometallurgy). It is a green technology with minimum to zero carbon footprint (uses no carbon), and a green energy producing process (waste heat recovery of the acid plant and autoclaves to electricity). 1) In beneficiation, the ore is dressed separating nickel concentrates and chromite concentrates. 2) Quality Packing of hydrometallurgical grades concentrates of chromite. 3) It uses sulfur (a nutrient/food constituents in terms of sulfate sulfite and sulfide) to make sulfuric acid a nickel and cobalt extracting medium in terms of sulfide or sulfate. Sulfuric acid is the acid in the wet batteries of motorbike, jeeps trucks, and solar panel. 2) The Cobalt sulfide and nickel sulfide undergo oxidative leach, reacted with ammonium and ammonia. Thereafter cobalt sulfate amine is separated from nickel using selective organic solvent. The cobalt be packed as sulfide or purified further by hydrogen precipitation. 3) The nickel sulfate substance is refined by reacting it to ammonium and ammonia to form nickel ammomium sulfate. 4) the nickel amines ammonium sulfate reacted further to molecular hydrogen to precipitate pure nickel and produce ammonium sulfate as fertilizer by-product. 5) liquid ammonium sulfate, treated as by-product further dried into granules and packed for sell.
The remaining materials with very minimum sulfuric acid shall be treated for neutralization with industrial lime producing calcium sulfate a kind of food additive (in breads, cereal and animal), chalk, gypsum, water hardness moderator and nutrient additives in animal feeds and nutrient enhancer in fishponds and fish cages. The bulk materials left is rich in sulfates of iron, magnesium potassium, silicon, aluminum and others are good soil texture and ion exchange enhancer. The residual materials can be recycled for iron metal production, ferrous sulfate production, magnesium sulfate production, chalk and gypsum production, alum production which are all medicinal, nutritional and non toxic. The bulk material can be use into bricks, clay pots, tisa, tigula, tiles, chalk, cement and fertilizers.
V. THE ECC PROCESS, THE CHURCH AND POLITICIAN ACTING BEAST AND HARLOT AGAINTS THE NEED OF MINDORO
IN MINDORO, THE CUNNING ROMAN CATHOLICS HEADED BY SVD PRIESTS AND BISHOPS AND THE GUILEFUL POLITICIANS ARE PLAYING THE BEAST AND HARLOT (Read Revelation, The Bible). THEY DONE IT IN THE ECC PROCESS
May 14, 2009, the whole afternoon and evening. I am writing this to document the process of the public hearing in Pola on MNP. I objectively done this for my personal reference, for the knowledge of my family, relatives and friends in the name of the Lord.
SVD priests and the guile politician are acting satanic and harlot, grandstanding and chaos posing in a public hearing. This sector of priests needs to be disbanded. These LGU Officials need be condemned for my waste sweat and blood. I viewed them as sneaky and guileful. But in the name of the Lord I pray they will make their change and renewal.
The May 14, 2009 ECC process observation self documentation of Pedro Paqueo
1. Statement of Consumption for this Document as an Event View
This is a personal documentation on the actual-personal observation in the Mindoro Nickel Project (MNP) public hearing conducted by the DENR-EMB in Pola, Oriental Mindoro on May 14, 2009.
The Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is a quasi judicial body for mining, industrial projects and other development having significant environmental-social-economic concerns. It hears public reviews on concerns, and conducts referrals and study presentations to come up for a decision on the soundness or unsoundness of a project base on the studied and assessed social-economic-environmental document-merits: if the total assessed counts are positive it decides positive or if negative it decides negative. If room for improvements is found then the project is recommended for further studies. If project equivalence is social chaos due to lack of public knowledge then comprehensive project information education and communications is recommended as a continuing activity. If all requirements and studies are thoroughly done, the DENR issues Environmental Compliance Certificate with corresponding conditionality. Conditions and statements for activity programming and implementation contained in the ECC are categorical issues brought to public knowledge by the concerned sectors (EIA). Conditions and the statements on answers, solutions and mitigating measures targeted to those respective issues (EIS) are programmed for monitoring.
2. The Purpose of Writing this Document
My first purpose of writing this personal view is for my lifetime file to share to my family and friends the playing beast and harlots in real and local life in earth, to inform my faith and blood brother, a Jesuit Priest. I need to share to him priests’ behavior for he is also a priest. I pray and thanks that the Lord Jesus, for the honor of His Name, provides his servant good health and peace of mind.
The second purpose is to record a significant event of falsehood of the development opposition my eyes had seen, my ears had heard and my heart had felt which can be used as reference for future questions and topics on projects and development and knowledge absorption, all relative to maintain the human civilization advancement. Any falsehood, if purposely establish may invade and even influence decision making in any technical recommendations, we call it fear inclination: instead of recommending corrections to check and strengthen, it declares denial to and disowning to destroy (Christ in Pilate session).
The third purpose is to share to other citizens my actual observation and get their views for me to further analyze the event, its future impact to the socio-cultural dimension of human development in Mindoro.
The Fourth purpose is to provide reference wherein future discussions with subject personalities can be explored to repair development damages, decide forgiveness and approach reunification, and pursue common development direction. After all, events are knowledge sources and foundations that step up human civilization.
3. The Observed Event :
I personally observed that the 2009 Mindoro Catholic Church Priest, Bishop, Nuns, Vice Governor Aceron, Mayor Ortega, Vice-Mayor Castillet, ALAMIN members and their line of supporters behave unsoundly, disturbing the gym and the hearing process. There are roughly 2300 registered participants already filling the gym as early as six in the morning. The other participants to be registered (coming from other municipalities who are pro development) may approach 3000-5000. But the oppositionist threatened their registration. Roughly 200 oppositionists forcefully displaced the persons in the attendance table attended by the EMB and other authority to facilitate attendance documentation. The oppositionist outside the gym may approach 3000. The hardline 200 are talagang Sobrang Bastos (exceedingly uncultured). Even the street lights in central streets of Pola where they paraded were broken by them.
The Catholic Church of Mindoro, the On-Office Politicians of Oriental Mindoro and Municipality of Victoria failed to recognize the rule of law (under the quasi judicial system), showed no respect to the people in authority and to their countrymen and fellowmen. Alas, our taxes (our sweat and blood) are plundered using the self legalized illegal policy paper of local mining moratorium (their Mining Moratorium is against RA 7942, against the free access of information provided in the Philippine Constitution and against the Human Rights declarations of the United Nations). The spoiled the public hearing process even at the common instruction of submitting their position and sit down for discussion. The morning of May 14, 2009, they seemed to be the initial material version of Beast and Harlot of the Revelation in the Bible.
I warn the Mindorenos. They should stay away from their priests and local officials acting as beast and harlots, for they are going to their own destruction because of their lack of knowledge. Remember that the attitude of not absorbing knowledge leads to self destruction (Satan vs Christ: Satan has deep personal knowledge that Christ is the Son of God in human flesh in earth, but he refuses to absorb/accept that knowledge and revered Him not on reason that he, Lucifer, was a Covering Cherub before the face of GOD when he was still in heaven. Therefore Lucifer was cast down from heaven to earth and goes unto destruction latter at the end of human age. He was disgraced twice: in heaven as covering cherub cast down to earth, and in earth he was dethroned by the human flesh Christ. He has few years more in this end of times. Remember that their number is 666, a forever incomplete number, meaning a false beguiling personality that can penetrate and recopy to any person they beguiled, they can never go into eternity, they destroy one another and their selves with an ignoble purpose, they can never enter heaven. Their damnation is eternal fire and eternal non existence. Before, the beguiling personality is one organization, i.e., the church and the government in one. Today they are two independent split personality yet their ideas are married and live from the sweat and blood of the people (heartfelt contribution to the church, tax money to the politicians). These personalities are working to confuse people and push their agenda: to rule people, extract percentage money (blood and sweat of their constituents), pursue to be rich and maintain political power machine to maintain their high position in the society (socially respected, honorable, venerated).
4. Humanity, Our Maintained Identity
Following statues/laws/regulations and loving the knowledge of it are basics of Democracy and Faith in Jesus Christ. Even in communism, the ultimate language is rules written in the mind and hearth. In socialism, the language is rule of shared decision. In Christ it is knowledge and subservience to law and process, holding of love to humanity and knowledge for the management of energy, materials, time and events to sustain a peaceful human civilization. Without knowledge, laws, rules and process, we are not human and we can never exist forever.
5. The Point of Argument
The point of behavioral heat up of the development oppositionists is the Mindoro Nickel Project (MNP). MNP is misunderstood by all the Church and ALAMIN and their followers. But the propose project is understood by the visionary Mindorenos as an opportunity for a change in their lives, from extreme poverty to an improve one, i.e., at least at the level of having clothing and safe dwelling, food (at least 3 meals a day), clean water, health, and education and reach technical and college studies of their children: after all the resources are given by God for man to soundly use (if not for man then it is for Satan, but God forbid since the beginning of the world, it is not for Satan, in Mindoro it is for Mindorenos that need it most). The people said: once our children enter and obtain knowledge in engineering, sciences and technologies, cultures, social science and democratic faith, they can plan their sustainable development without much pressure to the limited land resources we have, that is they can find jobs (a common statement: We have one hectare titled land and have four children, how can my children sustain their family and their children’s needs if they have to divide a hectare land into four parts? The health and education of their children can not be sustained. We are at the end of times, yet we have not approach any sound meals daily. Although we lack a sound living we revere God, after all our life is for Him and His forever).
The people also dreamed that Mindoro will have to build many industries, many sound social services. They supposed that their children will have sound jobs to sustain their living towards many generations (‘til the coming of the Lord). They prayed that the generations while waiting the Lord have the capability to soundly and freely plan their community development balancing their resource consumption and production, sharing with others and acknowledging all the graces given by the Lord.
The project in Mindoro is Nickel Mining and Processing. The mine area is located (straddling) at low elevation mountain areas of Barangays Pag-asa and San Agustin, Sablayan Occidental Mindoro and Villa Cerveza, Victoria Oriental Mindoro. If approved, after all the studies as the law demanded, the mined material will be brought to the processing plant at Pola via conveyor passing the few barangays of the Municipality of Socorro, Oriental Mindoro.
The Nickel Processing Plant: The Municipality of Pola ranks first in the study for the building of ~US$2.4B nickel processing, refining, international port, material management infrastructure, transport corridor, infrastructures and measures to mitigate social-space and resources displacements. The other municipalities considered for establishing the processing plant are Sta Cruz, San Teodoro, and City of Calapan. The Processing Plant proposed in Pola uses the clean and advance technology of high pressure acid leach, i.e., a) it uses sulfur to make sulfuric acid as chemical medium to separate nickel from the clay ore limonite (sulfuric acid is the acid in the wet batteries of motorbike, automobile, trucks & solar panel energy storer), b) it recovers waste heat from highly exothermic process of sulfuric acid making, acid dilution, acid metal reaction, and acid neutralization into electricity, b) it recovers refinery media/materials to produce ~3-5 million bags of ammonium sulfate fertilizers, c) it recovers valuable materials as by-poducts like chromite concentrates from beneficiation and cobalt salts in refining stage, d) and it safely treats the very small acid left in residual materials with industrial lime and manages these acid neutralized remaining materials for future use such as iron, gypsum/chalk, vitamins and medicine, P-K fertilizers, planters, fishpond water purifier, water hardness/ph moderator in fishpond, wetlands & rice paddies and coastal fish cages, kitchen ceramics and cement materials. Calcium sulfate may even be re-extracted for additives in animal feeds, and in carbohydrates/breads and cereals for human consumption. The project can be certified clean project and technology (if applied for the purpose) since it has minimum to zero carbon footprints. Under the term Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) it can generate some million dollars annually in its Carbon Credits which can be use to invest further in its social development and environmental enhancement. The processing plant is the main component of the MNP and the mining represent only small portion.
The Mining Process and Related Issues. The issues in mining are Erosion, Siltation and Flood. It was already explained that these three items are natural phenomena. Using scientific systems and advance engineering, the erosion due to material and machine movements can be controlled. The best explanation is the Ifugao rice terraces. The Igorots are the best landcape and sustainable development engineers ever lived. The mining adopt the same since mining and civil engineers shall follow the open cut-terrace system of moving limonite oxide clays/soil. Logical to contain erosion is to make land slope gradient at safe level or slope lowered to a very minimum to approach ground stability against erosion. Parallel protective technologies are the following: a) contour canal to divert runoff water safely and contain the downward velocity to be non or less erosive, b) drainage canal to contain water volume flow in one safe downgraded-downslope channel and direct the same to the soil trap and siltation pond. Soil trap functions in trapping larger soil particles and regularly removed and transported the same as ore material to the processing plant. Siltation pond functions in calming down water velocity to allow settling of fine water suspended particles. After the mining, if land owners wanted trees to be planted in their lots it will be done, if the lot owners wanted agroforestry for income food security and tree crops it will be done, if the lot owners wanted rice terraces then the company will make upland pipe irrigation to irrigate the terrace mined lots. All the regulations to rehabilitate are contained in the IRR of the RA 7942. Under the law, all these mine mitigating measures need to be functional, and all the processing mitigating measures are operating.
Poison/Toxic substances are another issue: they said that Intex will be mining poison and toxic elements. From chemistry, metallurgy, and mineralogy the knowledge to be reckoned are as follows: 1) oxide is the last mineralization stage prior the pure elemental composition of a chemical substance, 2) oxide is a clay soil and never retains the poison and toxic elements of lead, cadmium, arsernic, selenium and mercury constantly at the rocks as sulfide ores, 3) the ore of the toxic elements along with gold and silver and copper are sulfide, the rocks. Rock is different from clay soil and never be mined in the MNP terms of projects. MNP mine only soil-clay limonite and never mine sulfide rocks therefore it never mine ore of toxic elements and gold, and further therefore, it will never extract gold and toxic elements.
The Antimining Rallying People Pose Life Danger in Bayanan Gym, Pola.
On May 14, 2009 the schedule of public hearing of MNP initiated by EMB was conducted at Pola Municipality at the Bayanan Gym, the opposing Catholic Church and On-Public Office Politicians failed to recognize the rule of law. The Catholic Church of Mindoro with network arm ALAMIN was backed up by the On-Public Office Politicians with full array of their office and agency personnel even to include Police in Uniforms, headed by Oriental Mindoro Vice Governor Aceron, Victoria Mayor Ortega, Victoria Vice Mayor Castillet, (Congressmen Boy Umali and RG Valencia on remote contacts). It’s OK that the church spent the church money anyway they are responsible to their Church members and God, but still they are bound to follow rules, process and system of Public Hearing (very similar to court proceedings).
But for those On-Public Office Politicians, they used our taxes (our sweat and blood termed as IRA) on the rally with the purpose of stopping the DENR-EMB public hearing for MNP. It’s ok a leader will go opposing or rallying with their private car and self paid gas not on working days. But the mayors, the vice mayor the vice governor staged/backed up the rally of the Catholic and ALAMIN on May 14, 2009 (Thursday) carrying government vehicle, and government paid personnel from Oriental Mindoro Provincial Capitol. The Victoria Municipal Administrations and several of its barangays carry with them government vehicle and personnel paid by the tax money staging against a project which is a flagship of the Philippine Government. Such doing is a deviation to their duty, and irresponsible use of tax money and public properties. They need to be administratively investigated and may proceed for civil case filing (the DILG role on managing interior local governance, the Ombudsman, the Solicitor General, the High Court, and the Philippine Congress may take their look into that deviation).
The opposing camp claimed to have ~ 4000 rallying people from all over Oriental and Occidental Mindoro against the 90% population of entire Pola favoring MNP represented by ~2300 full packed in the Bayanan Gym, that is for the 23 barangays there are 100 representatives in each barangay. Some of the opposing camp claimed it was 7000 but they don’t have the signature count making the claim baseless and they may include the pro-development forces of 2,300 inside the gym, the 3000-4000 outside the gym and the many other Pola people in the streets, markets and commercial areas conducting regular day business.
The other representatives who supported the project coming from Pola, Socorro, Calapan, Victoria, San Teodoro, Baco, and Sablayan, stayed standing and outside the gym but within the lot perimeter of the gym numbering at 3000-4000. Their counts and attendance are available from the representative in-charge and coordinators.
The people inside the gym thought that the Heads of Catholic Church, the Alamin, the opposing On-Public Office Politicians will set down and present their position to the project but they harassed the people attending the process, trampled the sacredness of the public hearing process under the EMB authority to hear (quasi judicial authority with a named Case Handler of MNP). The team of the EMB at the start cleared that everybody must follow rules of the hearing: be registered for recognition as participant, sit down or stand on their post and participate peacefully for the hearing and present concerns in document. “The hearing is with rules, and sacred similar to the conduct of case hearing in regular civil courts”. They also dishonored the constantly repeated resolution statement of Municipal Mayor Honorable Alex Aranas: this is our municipality we have Pola people and visitors, each one must register to be recognized, attend, sit down or stand at peace and participate in the process. Everyone has the right to air his/her opinion and be heard.
Opposition is good. It made everyone of us mature on development decision. It gives healthy exchange of knowledge and ideas in order to come up a better/informed decision for a development proposal in the most peaceful, human and civilized way.
But if opposition becomes deviant to proper human thinking and peace, if it rejects/evades quasi-court rules proceedings (as a public hearing termed or public in session on the initiation of EMB as mandated by the law to hear public notions on high economic social and environmental significant projects), and command to march and to advance to show human force endangering lives then it is not opposition, it is insanity. Insanity has many forms and output, .e.g., rebel to separate, suicide to end, give false statement to evade and to hide, and finally kill to be powerful: these are the ways of Satan. I seen it and I dropped to my sit questioning myself, are we really human or is Satan operating as human in church and politicians?
The politicians with their interest are tricky, i.e., they ride to float their name using peoples’ taxes. In Mindoro both politicians and the church are playing beast and harlot they come from the flood of water termed as many people. See revelation of bible.
They even go further for event- crime execution (even initiating people to run to death, for a stampede on a full packed Bayanan Gymnassium).
At the height of opposition disturbance, Pola Mayor Alex Aranas sounded for the rights of people of Pola, he said: this is Pola, the people of Pola need a change, Pola People want development. Who are you to curtail our right to development? Leave us alone to decide our vision and objectives. You outsiders of Pola said no to mining, no to development. What alternative jobs, works and livelihood opportunities you can give to Pola People? There is none, so you better leave us alone. Leave our place. It is us the People of Pola who will decide for our development not you who are not resident Pola. You should respect us. Did you bring us food? No. Did you provide us job? No. But why you are here disturbing our peaceful process. If you received your invitation, you should follow public hearing rules and regulations: register for recognition, sit down or stand silently, peacefully hear presentations, and present issues and ideas. Do not make noise shouting chaotic grandstanding. You should observed sacredness of this Case Hearing like a Court Hearing. But what you have done, you disturbed the hearing process, and not only that, you derailed our dream. You disturbed this supposed peaceful case hearing. I can’t imagine what kind of people you are. We supposed to have leaders, professionals, priest, nun, mayor, and officers from national government but why you did not observed the sacredness of this hearing?. Is this the moral education the Catholic SVD priests gave to you? I tell you Pola are disciplined people. People of Pola, my people, even if you are disturbed and harassed by these antimining priests, mayors, vice mayor and vice governor, be calm and maintain at your position until this ALAMIN will exit out. All you priests, nuns, vice governor, victoria mayor and vice mayor get out and bring all your people out let them go back to their respective municipality. You dishonored and disgusted the People of Pola. You are disrespectful to the process of public hearing in my municipality. Let us see in the election. People of Pola, we will pay them back in the election.
(Stilll Aranas) All of the Barangay Chairmen of Pola, take hold of your people on your location and on your sits. Make all be observant for what chaos and danger these antimining people may execute to us they are now inside the gym unregistered and unrecognized. They may force the situation to a stampede. But just be calm and be respectful still and avoid hurting them. If they hurt you they will be dealt with the proper authority.
There was stand still and a short time observation to the noisy 200 core antiming team (approximate) that displaced and feared the attending Pola people sitting on lined chairs at the back of gym court (portion inside the gym) just near the entrance. I look for a chance to stop the march of the antiming to the stage, and I got one. I saw Mayor Aranas and Vice Governor Estee at heated verbal debate in the court/stage. Mayor Aranas stepped back two times from his position with Vice Gov Estee. I then went up at the stage asked the Vice Governor Estee with the following statement: Madam niyurakan nyo na si Mayor, umalis na po kayo. Immediately after that personal pronouncement/statement I went down the stage. A minute later the Vice governor stepped down the stage took a megaphone from a priest and announces that she will leave the gym. He gave thanks to the people of Pola for that event.
Notes: the heated debate of Aranas and Aceron may be on the two-hand full force body pushing of Edu to Aranas three times on a few minutes that the approximate 200 core rallyists were commanded by Edu Gariguez to get haste inside the gym. I did not clearly hear the command but may be it was in the following statement: pasok tayo at mag-ingay sa loob, sisirain natin ang kanilang proseso sa kahit anong paraan (get haste inside, we make noise inside and stop their process in any ways). And I saw people displaced from their sits and running to the front of the stage on danger and fear to be trampled by the antiming marchers. At that same minute Mayor Aranas went down from stage/court table to meet the rallyist running from the entrance to the back spaces and vacated chairs of the registered participants. “Every reader in this document should note that the noisy core rallyist did not register for attendance and participation, so that their noise inside the gym is unwelcomed, and their disturbance is against the peaceful process the court wanted to maintain as it was from 7:00-9:00 AM of that date –process of attendance recording and participants indetification”. (My heart felt the following: The police did not do anything to contain the noisy grandstanding crowd outside the gym and protect the sacredness of the public court inside the gym. That incapability saddened me. Paying those police with their salary was a waste of my tax money, my sweat and blood). The police don’t know their job or may be they collaborated to the antimining rallyist headed by Edu Gariguez, Priest of Pola and anti development leaders. But I did not pay tax to Edu Gariguez. I Pay tax to the government so that these police will do public job such as peace keeping and orderliness in the public events. What a waste).
The EMB announced more or less in these following compact statements: We should abound to the law. We must respect the law. All must respect the quasi judicial hearing process so that everybody’s concern can be aired up and entertained. But what have you done to this court, you spoiled the process. Since your representatives already presented and submitted position papers, we officially record it as received. We will study the same and analyze if your presentations are valid, researched as facts and if reasonable match the same to the project studies and measures, and other mitigating researches and studies to pursue development in the most analytical way. We are supposed to directly discuss the same here in open presentation but why you disturb the process? To avoid clash between the two parties/forces, we will stop discussion of issues and concerns. Instead we will officially collect and received your submitted concerns and petition contained in these thick papers and folders of your representatives. We will attend to all the concerns. But this spoil must not be the case.
“In a plain view of observer attending a court hearing, tracking the actions and interactions of two different parties should be done. The authority of that hearing must stand to its mandate. It must convey to the police peace and order procedure. Since Police and EMB are both government agencies, they already know their respective functions for they have signed their job appointments and job related conditions. If they don’t know their job appointment and job conditions then they are not the right persons to occupy such public appointments. The innate destroying culture-practice of a party must be separated from that public court. That is they should make their destructive noise and rallies outside the sacred premises of the court. The Police suppose to guard the sacredness of that public court but why they can’t control that alien behavior of antidevelopment rallyist? It was suppose to be their job as public servant on peace and order to control the process-destroyer-alien culture.
On the side of EMB, rules must be defined, that is if sacredness of public hearing process is spoiled an equivalent civil administrative measures must be imposed so that sacredness will prevail so that public time and money must not go unto a waste and spoil. In a peaceful process, and opposing party must make its protest environment outside that public hearing process. Remember if mob rule always rules, then the earth is not humanity it is for insanity and Satan. As an individual, I will not be succumbed. I will hold my peace to the Lord.
But at the beginning, all 2300+ people full packed inside the gym signed for attendance from 7:30 AM to 9:00 AM. The program declared by the EMB to officially begin at 9:00 AM. The EMB acknowledge the guest, presentors and participants. The EMB declared that others who still not signed the attendance need to fill the attendance sheet and sign to be recognized in the public hearing.
Mayor Aranas through the municipal administrator play the Pola March: that may be passed eleven in the morning. At this time of playing the Pola March, the antiming-antidevelopment camp headed by Edu Gariguez, Mindoro Oriental priests and nun, vice governor Aceron, Victoria Mayor Ortega, Victoria Vice Mayor Castillet, all their staff and personnel and common supporter leave the gym. It was 11:50 AM (in my cel fon time) when the gym was at peace.
Additional information of lies:
In the November 17-18, 2009 Edu, Religious Leaders Pavillo, and Cajandig Mindoro Officials, i.e, Panaligan, Umali, Aceron, Valencia, Ortega, Castillet. This team took with them mangyan hunger strike participants who are not resident and owner of the Mangyan Alangan CADT and Kabilogan (Bangon-Tadyawan) CADC. To all the readers, the Sadaki-Mangyan Langana Leader is Ramil Baldo. The Kabilogan leader is Daniel Cabo. Any name beyond this are not the legitimate leaders of mangyan groups in the area where the Nickel Tenement is located. In operations this groups have royalty. The other mangyans will be treated with the social development and management program. In their royalty it is the capacity of the mangyan group in agreement with Intex to help other mangyan groups though the facilitation of NCIP.
VI. ANSWERS TO SOME MNP OPPOSITIONS: (the concerns are the original writings of the mining opposition. The answers are from the writer)
Concern 1: Watershed destruction. Mindoro’s economy is largely based on agriculture. The MNP is directly located in the Mag-asawang Tubig River Watershed, which is the source of irrigation for some 50,000-hectare rice fields in the towns of Victoria, Naujan and Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro. These three towns are responsible for 51% of the total rice production of the province. The province of Oriental Mindoro, which ranked third as the province that produces the most food in the country, and known as the foodbasket of the southern Luzon region.
Answer 1:
Watershed is a rain catchment with upper and lower elevation areas draining water to a common river and empty to the sea. It includes areas of mountains, flatlands, wetlands, and rice paddies having common river emptying to the sea. Only portion of Victoria (Barangay Villa Cerveza and Alcate), and portion of Naujan are served by the Mag-asawang Tubig Watershed for Irrigation (see NIA Offices in Oriental Mindoro if you can’t identify it in the map or you can’t traverse the site).
Please Note:
Calapan City is an outsider of that concern for it draws its irrigation water from the Bucayao Watershed, the occupancy of Mt. Halcon and Mt. Baco. Meaning, that the statement of concern has innate falsehood, or it can be restated to negate the false portion, making the statement of concern true.
The area of the watershed is 50,000 hectares - this is false. The watershed can only be approximated at most 42,000 hectares. However I may be wrong. But let’s go to the topographic map, of known scale, measure the same manually, take the ratio and proportion and unit conversion. Then let’s have watershed traverse to determine the same in certainty on ground. In the side of antiming, you need a professional forester or watershed scientist to centralize the discussion in watershed not priest or any politician who don’t have knowledge and not professional of subject).
Answer 1, extended details: Situation of the Mag-asawang Tubig Watershed and the Nickel Tenement.
The Tenement is ~11,000ha
Planned removal of clay-soil limonite: 2 - 12 meters deep
Terrace Plot Rise = 3 meters (safe)
Terrace Plot Run = 15-20 + meters (flat or slightlysloping)
Total Watershed is ~42,000 ha (needs ground delineation for certainty of ridges or water divides
that divide the rainfall)
Upland drain area ~80% or ~ 33,600 ha
Lowland drain area~ 20% or ~ 8,400 ha
Tenement Ratio to the Entire Watershed ~ 26%
Tenement Ratio to the Upland Drain Area ~ 32.7%
Development movement per year ratio to the Entire Watershed Area ~ 0.23%
Development movement per year ratio to the Watershed Upland Area ~ 0.29%
Note, from the ground: In Victoria only Barangays Villa Cerveza and Alcate benefiting irrigation water from Mag-asawang Tubig. Parties needing true ground information should verify the same on the ground, in topographic map showing drainage pattern and contour lines, elevations, and implied land forms and characteristics (scale of 1:20,000 or 1:50,000 may work. Charts are available in NAMRIA for a fee).
Area Movement Disturbance per year = 100 ha
D1, Disturbed on operation year = 100 ha
D2, Disturbed in first year planting after mining = 100 ha
D3, Disturbed in the second year plantation maintenance after mining = 100 ha
Total Effective Area Vulnerable to Erosion Due to Rain = 300 ha
% effect annual disturbance in reference to the entire watershed 0.23%
% effect annual disturbance in reference to the upland area of the watershed = 0.89%
There is perceived volume multiplicity of erosion impact since material removal to be set aside and be returned is voluminous. But, Physics and Engineering solutions may mitigate the same as provided below:
Engineering Erosion Control Measures On-Mining and After-Mining
1. Hedgerows planted to flemingia and kenaf and other agroforestry crops. Controls the runoff water.
2. Contour canal or diversion canal immediately either side of the hedgerow or alternately. It safely diverts the accumulated water run off and exit to a drainage canal.
3. Low Slope-gradient Drainage canal. Canal of maximum slope gradient of 15 % to contain water downward velocity at minimum erosive force. Engineering recommendation of necessary concreting of the wall of drainage canal may be done to prevent erosion.
4. Contour table planting by agroforest crops and forest crops together
a. If close canopy of bush need to be attained in 6-9 months, flemingia and kenaf can be planted in close spacing, say 1m x 1m. Flemingia (nitrogen fixer, Flemingia macrophyla) and Kenaf (Hibiscus canabinus) are fast growing in any type of soil, with leaves good for fodder and woody bush stem good for fuelwood. In nine months the soil will be fully covered and the roots system of these crops bind strongly the laterite soil. Both plants are highly fibrous that the high fiber roots have high strength compared to other plants. The roots of these plants are pliable, and seldom break. The root extends down 2-3 meters for fleminigia and 3-4 meters for kenaf. Flemigia reach a height of 3 meters and kenaf to 6 meters. Biomass yield (leaves) may approach 10 tons per ha per year (need studies) that forms thick cover in the ground protecting the surface soil from the erosive rain.
b. Contour table can be planted to banana (Musa sp), coffee (Coffea robusta), and rubber (Hevea brasiliences). The crops are of high economic and food security values growing well in lateritic soil). These agroforest crops can be planted along the flemingia and kenaf.
c. Forest trees can be planted mixed with the agroforest crops which may close its canopy on 7th year for Albizia falcataria, and on the 20th year for Dipterocarpaceae.
5. Terrace plot. Leveling the mined areas into perfect terraces similar to Banawe Rice Terraces with sound drainage canal and contour canal. This measure shall be supported by Upland Pipe Irrigation Technology to continually produce rice 2-3 times a year.
6. Soil Trap. It is pool structure that trap soil ganules and cleaned/maintained periodically
7. Drain Overflow creek-river exit. A gabion supported water channel structure to contain erosion in drain exits going to settling pond and rivers.
8. Settling pond, is an area use to disperse water volume, slows down water flow to settle fine suspended particles prior freeing clear water to rivers. The settling pond after its function in 3-5 years can be used for rice cropping or planted to vegetables, to agroforest crops or to forest trees.
9. Surface soil (that is approximately 1-2 meters deep, that will be in secured place for a while, need to be covered to protect it from rain washout. Its stock yard needs to provide erosion and flooding control to avoid mud emission to the terrestrial landscape and waterbodies.
From the above elementary physics and engineering, erosion can be contained in minimum (baseline standard), with first lower canopy to close in 6 to 9 months, second layer agri canopy to close on the third year, with the third layer agroforest canopy to close on the 7th year, and with the fourth layer forest trees upper canopy to close on the 20th year. At post mining, if the farmers and land owners are happy with the income and environmental enhancement of agroforestry having rubber latex, coffee and banana harvests maintaining/enhancing their income and livelihood, then it is imperative that closure of full forest trees canopy may be decided by the farmers to be delayed, until sustainable industries form their end comes.
By this system, i.e., canopy layering and simple run off water velocity control. watershed destruction can be avoided.
Note: Terrace is the most environmentally-economically stable landscape system in hills and mountains. The Banawe Rice terrace technology and its sustainable/ecological system, is termed as Coupled Farm and Forest: water from upper forest is made to be an irrigation input to the rice terrace farm, and the benefited farmers protect the forest to maintain waterflow for irrigation to their rice terrace farms.
Concern 2: Biodiversity concerns. The mine-site is a major biodiversity conservation area. MNP’s processing site falls within the Verde Island Passage Marine Biodiversity Area (VIPMBA).
VIPMBA is acknowledged as such, and any international ship shall be ordered not to appraoch the passage boundary. Although VIPMBA is known east northeast of the project site, mining and plant site are not affecting as anyone think. On any thinking of gas concentration in the airshed of VIPMBA, the same is remote. The processing plant uses green technology, generates minimum to zero carbon footprints, recovers waste heat for electricity, and manages the residual materials as nutrient substances for probable agriproduction and nutrient to the fresh and sea water nutrient. Ex: Corals – the materials of corals are definitely constituted majority with calcium, magnesium, sodium, iron and potassium sulfates and halides and ammines. Its soft body is constituted of halide ammines in sulfo organic molecules, its hard shells or housing is composed of sulfo halide of calcium and magnesium. These substances are salts similar to the residual material of the nickel processing plants. Note the sulfates and halides in sea are absorbed by living organisms to become constituent of protein and responsible in shell hardening. Therefore the residual material is safe to human, to biodiversity and environment. It is ruled that the massive accumulation of materials can be destructive. In this case there is a need to impose material management system to recycle materials and find valuable options of uses for agricultural and environmental enhancement.
Experts will try to see if there are relative conservation program activities or local program initiatives of Biodiversity activities in Victoria, Pola, Sta Cruz, San Teodoro and Calapan.
However, it is known and understood that LGUs have limited income/internal revenue allotment, may and may not allocate biodiversity conservation proposals relative to VIPMBA. Since it is implied that the biodiversity that can be found are lateritic-tropical-terrestrial-and-marine ecology related then the MNP, in agreement with the local, may treat the Verde Island Passage Marine Biodiverstiy program planning. After all, big international and local industries are sources of environmental, social and non for profit development assistance (corporate giving): conservation international, the main provider of environmental and biodiversity funds live on it. Drawing international non profit activities ofrom it can be connected to biodiversity management and climate change mechanisms. Corporate Social Responsibility may take the thinking of the MNP management to that mechanism.
Concern 3: Indigenous peoples’ (IP) concerns. MNP is located within the ancestral domain claims of Alangan and Tadyawan Mangyans. Mining will have great impacts on their livelihood and culture.
The IP in the ~11,000 ha mine site are Sadaki-Alangan and the Kabilogan (from the line Bangon-Tadyawan). SADAKI-Alangan is represented by Ramil Baldo, and Kabilogan is represented by Daniel Cabo. Agreements with the two groups were done. Part of the agreement (capability building) is to draw respective IP Development Plan. This may now be formulated by the respective groups with the supervision of the NCIP. If ample benefits are made by the two IP groups, they will then be capacitated by the NCIP and other concerned organizations such as Mangyan Mission of Catholic Church and othe Denominations to extend their benefits sustainably to the other 6 or 7 groups of mangyan. In their Ancestral Domain Sustainable Development and Protection Plan (ADSDPP), there will be management systems, policies, interventions, projects and activities to protect their culture and cultural leadership, to ensure their food security, dwelling, and maintain the balance of their livelihood to the environment.
But the IPs at the rally and hunger strike are coming not from the SADAKI-Alangan and KABILOGAN (alangan-tadyawan-bangon lineage) inVilla Cerveza of Victoria Oriental Mindoro and in San Aguatin and Pag-asa Sablayan Occidental Mindoro. – this is deceit. Father Edu, the bishops, the church system, the on office politicians are now deceitful in this period nearing to local and national election: Is this related to election? If that is the case then the Project is a victim of political war. Therefore, to us Filipinos, Politics is more important than sustainable business and development. But that should not be the case, concerns must take the balance of systems. I’m so sad of this. This is a signal of national isolation from the rest of international business and scientific advancement. Philippines will drain the best brains, and Filipinos will forever be domestic helper – but I wish it not, we need to pray, after all its God’s Grace and Bounty, and its man’s shortfall of thinking.
Concern 4: Local government opposition. The province of Oriental Mindoro passed a 25-year mining moratorium ordinance in 2002 prohibiting the entry of all large-scale mining. In Occidental Mindoro, similar mining moratorium ordinances were passed by the municipal governments of Sablayan, the provincial government of Occidental Mindoro.
Note: Their resolution and ordinance have a tail: this resolution or this ordinance shall be implemented not in contrary to the Philippines Constitution and Laws. Therefore related ordinances are just position and sentiment that need to be respected and heard.
Answer 4:
Local positions relative to MNP need to be respected and National Law need to be implemented. Therefore the local Stakeholders and the development contractors of the national government on mineral development need to sit down, with the DENR-EMB-MGB as referee, to lay down plans and resources in mineral and industrial development projecting responsibilities and sustainable benefit of all the stakeholders, enhance the environment and the economy, enhance/sustain/and expand agricultural activity/productivity and food security.
It is acknowledged that IRA is not enough for the development and social services provision of the majority. However LGU officials are bound to make initiatives of generating resources in sustainable way to continually support the local development and maintain the life of the LGU even if the IRA is removed (the objective of autonomy). As the local economy draw unto stability by means of sustainable local resource generation, the local will now be the contributor to the national coffer and no longer branded as leech.
Personal Statement for Peace and Development (the knowledge)
Mob Rule is the Culture of the Philippines. I understand it now. But I am sad.
I thank the antimining of Mindoro for the plan in Nickel Mining and Processing had improved, projected more direct benefits to Mindoro. Since the world is hungry of clean and green energy, this may become a base study for their Future Mineral and Industrial reconfiguration: 1) China has two or four (54 MW electricity from sulfuric acid plant), 2) United States is rebuilding all its industries to become clean-green energy generating instead of consuming (meaning its sulfur industries and carbon and other heat generating industries will have systems of heat recovery, lower carbon emission and even recover carbon dioxide for other uses).
For MNP-Intex, its plan was reconfigurated to recover materials for ammonium sulfate fertilizer (farmers directly benefit on probable low cost fertilizer), recover heat from acid plant and autoclave for green electric power (zero carbon energy, that may lower electric rate in Mindoro, may be from P12/kw to P7/kw), and recover metallurgical grade chromite from beneficiation, thereby reducing material stocking.
Further, acid neutralized materials are utilizable for agriland/soil amelioration, pH moderator and nutrient enhancer in wetlands and rice paddies, fishpond and fish cages in coastal areas. Calcium sulfates are good nutrient for corals, and arthropods (zooplanktons and big arthropods). Zooplanktons are the food of big fishes.
Further the materials that remain can be used for sandy and stony layer amelioration and into clay pots, bricks, tiles, chalk, or can be recovered for iron, cement and chalk manufacturing.
In mine site, elementary physics and landscape engineering are the answer of the feared impact (erosion, siltation) in the Mag-asawang Tubig Watershed (the living illustration is the Ifugao Rice Terraces).
Intex mine only oxide limonite clay soil and not rock. The ore of toxic and other heavy metals are sulfide or rocks. Since oxide-clay-soil is the material to be extracted not the rock sulfide, therefore materials move to the plant does not contain or has minimum toxic elements (heavy metals). Periodic table of chemical elements may explain this further. Iron triad group has different chemical and physical characteristics to the precious and other heavy metals. The toxic heavy metals in the rock sulfides are Mercury (Hg), Lead (Pb), Cadmium (Cd), Gallium (Ga), Selenium (Se), Arsenic (As).
The Oxide limonite clay soil if removed with nickel is the same soil materials we have in our farms. After processing the soil, it is even nutrient enrich due to the sulfate formation of readily exchangeable ions (magnesium, potassium, calcium, sodium). Sulfate ion is also absorbed by plant to become sulfite and sulfide in the enzymes, proteins and cells. Sulfur or the Sulfate is definitely antibiotics (the penicillin) and energy materials of cells. Think of all from food to medicine, to beauty media, sulfate ions is important. Colostrum, the milk secreted in mothers’ breast after 24-48 hours of child delivery has sulfur (methylmethanosulfomethyl). Sulfur powder that can be bought in public market is not toxic but a heal (antibiotics) of all type of skin diseases. Sulfur is the fuel of the nickel processing plant to be made as sulfuric acid. Sulfuric acid is the liquid chemical in the wet battery of motorbike, jeep, trucks, and solar panel.
Other Clean and Green little pieces for THE KNOWLEDGE available in the future are:
Agroforestation and Forestation Species Suitable for Lateritic Areas
Sustainable Rural Development. Authority for information use from Gina on her Dissertation on Upland Pipe Irrigation and Rice Terraces, the Ultimate Tool to Save Tropical Forest. Gina is a Doctor in Rural Development.
The Nickel Mining and Processing Information Education Materials
Projections on Nickel Mining Activity, Systems to be Used, Risks, Mitigating Measures (solutions) in Logical Frame. This can be a workshop format for all to share ideas in any discussion for mining or any project development.
the Nickel mining and processing knowledge
Illustration of Exothermic Chemical Reactions and Material Making, a practical source of green energy and immediate reducing of CO2 in the atmosphere while producing valuable products.
Mining CO2 and CH4 in the atmosphere or from farm immediate airsheds, converting the same to ethanol and acetic acid and PET and recovering exothermic reactions for electricity.
Mining CO2 from the atmosphere, reacting to the saltwater, recover heat for electricity and recover carbonate precipitates of magnesium, calcium sodium and potassium for use as farm soil ameliorator and acid neutralizer.
Mining Nitrogen and water from the atmosphere, converting the same to ammonium nitrate fertilizer and recovering heat for electricity.
A comprehensive human valuable material production industry and clean process heat recovery for electricity
