Tribal folk endorse mining project in Isabela town

TUGUEGARAO CITY — Another multimillion-peso mining venture is expected in the region after the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and a Makati-based mining firm were able to get the endorsement of villagers of a remote coastal town in Isabela for a nickel exploration project.

Engineer Jerrysal Mangaoang, regional director of the DENR’s Mines and Geosciences Bureau, said the Dumagat folk in remote Ayud village in Dinapigue town overwhelmingly voted for the proposed nickel mining project in their area.

Mangaoang said the Dumagats approved the mining project, which is backed by the national government, during a multisectoral consultative meeting held in the Dinapigue town proper last Aug. 19.

Earlier, the Dumagats reportedly threatened to resort to "war" if the government would insist on pushing through with the mining venture.

Mangaoang, however, belied the report, saying the indigenous folk, who dominate nickel-rich Ayud, accepted the project at their own free will following a series of consultations.

Aside from more than 300 Dumagats, Dinapigue officials and representatives of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), the DENR and anti-mining groups attended the Aug. 19 meeting.

Mangaoang said the proponents of the project, the Platinum Group and Metals Inc., have expected opposition from the anti-mining advocates led by the Catholic Church and left-leaning groups in the region.

"But what is important here is the Dumagats have spoken. They want the project to push through in their area. They have decided for themselves… without external pressures from both the pro- and anti-mining advocates," he said.

Mangaoang said the Dumagats’ endorsement is one of the requirements before the DENR could issue an exploration permit.

The project’s proponents also have to get the endorsements of the Dinapigue municipal council and the Isabela provincial board.

After all the endorsements are secured, the DENR and the NCIP would, in behalf of the government, enter into a mineral production sharing agreement with the proponents.

Earlier, the municipal council of Nagtipunan, Quirino declared support for the proposed Australian-funded gold and copper mining project at the mountain boundary of Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino.

The Nueva Vizcaya provincial board, led by Vice Gov. Jose Gambito, also expressed its support for the multibillion-peso project in Barangay Didipio, even if the Kasibu municipal council had rejected it.