Search for Zamboanga gold turns into greenery

MANILA, Philippines - In a perfect world, a mining company would leave its contract area intact, lush with vegetation with the surrounding waters teeming with fauna. Fortunately, this ideal scenario was made possible in a small sitio in the outskirts of Barangay Libay in Sibutad, Zamboanga del Norte. 

When Philex Gold Philippines Inc. (PGPI), a subsidiary of Philex Mining Corporation (Philex), first explored the mountains surrounding Sitio Lalab in Sibutad, it found an environment ravaged by slash-and-burn farming (kaingin), wanton tree felling, and illegal small-scale mining operations that left the surface of the mountains barren.

Mining only one percent, or 38 hectares, out of 3,515 hectares of contracted area during its run from 1997 to 1999, PGPI dedicated the remainder of the land to reforestation and mangrove plantation. A total of 509,011 trees were grown in an expanse covering 157 hectares in 2012.

“We have forested a vast area that was once covered thinly with cogon grass,” said Engr. Ramil Mundo, resident manager of Philex’ Sibutad Project. “Now Sibutad is covered with endemic and exotic trees and lush vegetation. It is also home to many exotic animals, such as the Philippine cobra, monitor lizard, and the red-tailed green rat snake.”

Another significant part of the project is the creation of a mangrove forest, which started in 1998. The first three years of the mangrove-planting program saw a total of 102,222 propagules (seedpods) planted in Barangays Libay, Kanim, and Calube in Sibutad, covering a 17-hectare area.

Philex expanded the plantation efforts in 2011 with 40,300 propagules planted in a 6.73-hectare area in 2013, bringing the total number of suckers (roots) to 111,135 planted across a coastal area of 14.58 hectares. The expansion has been carried out by Sibutad Project Employees Care and Maintenance Association, a group composed of the company’s former employees, since its revival three years ago.

While the Sibutad Project plans to plant more mangrove suckers in Sibutad town’s other coastal areas, its 2013 activity was focused along the Murcielagos Bay in Sitio Looc, Barangay Libay, as part of a commitment drawn up with the provincial office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Zamboanga del Norte in 1997.

Lalab’s greenery today can be seen by sojourners sailing by the Murcielagos Bay. “The Sibutad Project is a concrete proof that mining and a thriving environment can co-exist,” said Mundo. “Responsible mining is not just a catchphrase; it is experienced daily by residents and tourists here in Sibutad.”