GENERAL SANTOS CITY, Philippines – The environmental compliance certificate (ECC) for the proposed Tampakan mine project is more of a safeguard for potential environmental impact than a permit to operate, according to a third-party independent expert in the field of civil works and mine facilities.
“An ECC works as a safeguard, containing measures to ensure that environmental impacts are mitigated and managed; it is more than a permit to operate,†engineer Sonny Sebial told local media this week.
According to Sebial, an ECC application rests on an environmental impact study that requires the proponent to ensure that the environment is managed properly.
“The company has to make sure that the environment is not damaged from the time they start their operations up to the time they take care of the area after closure of operations,†said Sebial.
Sebial said the baseline data prepared by Sagittarius Mines Inc. (SMI), the government contractor for the Tampakan project, can be used for disaster prevention strategies by local government units.