Arroyo declares 8,100-hectare Diwalwal area a mineral reservation

After 19 years of unabated violence, environmental degradation, pollution and health issues, and endless legal battles, President Arroyo has finally proclaimed an 8,100-hectare portion of Mt. Diwalwal in Monkayo, Compostela Valley a "mineral reservation."

The President signed Proclamation No. 297 last Monday upon the recommendation of outgoing Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Heherson Alvarez. It was made public only the other day.

The proclamation was meant to prevent further degradation of Mt. Diwalwal, and solve the health and peace and order problems in the area caused by years of unregulated mining.

The President also classified the 8,100-hectare area as "environmentally critical" which the government would use exclusively for mining.

The proclamation effectively excludes the 8,100 hectares from the 50-year-old logging concession of Picop Resources Inc., which totals 184, 000 hectares.

The excluded area would be solely for mining, mineral processing plants and a common tailings disposal system.

Mining operations in the area may only be undertaken either by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) directly, subject to payment of just compensation to legitimate and existing claims, or by a qualified contractor.

Proclamation No. 297 is expected to directly benefit more than 4,000 small-scale miners and 20,000 residents at the gold-rush site at Mt. Diwalwal who are dependent on mining for livelihood.

Alvarez lauded the proclamation’s issuance, confident it would give rise to a "well-to-do middle class from among the small-scale miners."

"This is a triumph of the social justice program of President Arroyo. It is more than mining... Before, a great part of the wealth from the bowels of the Earth has been harvested to the great advantage of big mining operators," he said.

The President replaced Alvarez yesterday with Elisea Gozon as DENR chief. Gozon will assume the post on Dec. 15.

In the meantime, the President said Alvarez "must firm up initiatives on the environment, especially hazardous and toxic wastes, watersheds and the social justice program of the Arroyo government to build a new Diwalwal."

Presidential Spokesman Rigoberto Tiglao said Alvarez would later be given the "very difficult job" of assisting in the economic sustainability of certain strategic areas like Mt. Diwalwal.

The government took over the Mt. Diwalwal gold-rush site some three months ago after violence escalated there, stopping all mining activities and placing the area under an "emergency situation."

Police and military personnel were subsequently deployed at Mt. Diwalwal to maintain peace and order there.

The DENR later allowed the resumption of mining activities, granting service contracts to small-scale miners who would not use explosives in extracting gold ore from tunnels.

The DENR also addressed the pollution problem in the so-called "gold mountain" by building the Mabatas tailings dam that will contain mine tailings.

The DENR plans to establish mineral processing zones and a resettlement site in the area.