CEBU, Philippines - The Talisay City council may have approved three applications for small scale quarrying in barangay Lagtang but Councilor Bernard Joseph Odilao, who heads the committee on environment, made it clear that the applicants are bound by strict rules.
“It is therefore recommended that the applicants be given an approval to quarry in the subject area. But all necessary environmental requirements from DENR must be strictly complied with and especially an assessment from the Bureau of Geological Mines must be sought to ensure that no disastrous imbalance of the environment will transpire,” read a committee report handed over to the city council.
Councilor Danilo Caballero said the approval of the resolution was contrary to Odilao’s earlier proposal which sought to stop small scale mining in the city.
Caballero said there is a need to stop small scale mining in the city, particularly in the mountain barangays because of the prevalence of landslides during the rainy season.
But Odilao said the area to be quarried is an inherited property of the applicants and that the ecological landscape of the area is suitable for limestone quarrying.
Odilao also said the area is not densely populated.
“The applicant will be responsible for the safety of the general welfare of the community at large and prevent any degradation or polluting the environment especially the river ways and set up preventive dust traps,” Odilao said.
Furthermore, Odilao said the miners and other employees must be provided with protective gears and all necessary gadgets in compliance with the safety and health standards in such industry.