Tighter zoning rules in mining areas pushed

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Finance (DOF) has asked the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) to tighten their watch against housing sites near mining or quarrying areas to ensure the safety of residents.

During the recent meeting of the interagency Mining Industry Coordinating Council (MICC), Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez said the government should intensify its enforcement of zoning rules to ensure that there are no people residing in areas vulnerable to landslides and other geohazards.

Dominguez suggested this as top priority in the MICC’s 2019 agenda.

“We should put another special item there to work with the MGB (and) to work with DILG on zoning rules basically to prevent housing or any construction in quarry areas, and   mining areas that have been determined to be in a geohazard area,” he said.

The finance chief also asked the DILG to hold accountable executives of local government units who allowed their respective constituents to build their homes near mining areas.

Dominguez co-chairs the MICC with Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Roy Cimatu. 

Earlier, the MICC tasked the DENR to study the process of delineating the “go and no-go zones” for mining applications identified under Executive Order 79.

In relation to this, the DENR and other concerned agencies were also ordered to form a technical working group (TWG) that will identify a pilot area for the implementation of the updated no-go zones.

The MICC instructed DENR to check the provisions in the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of EO 79 and see whether the issues concerning the no-go zones could be resolved by revising the IRR.

The mining council had also agreed to conduct the second round of review of mining sites this year to cover the remaining 15 mining companies that were audited by the DENR under former environment secretary Regina Lopez in 2016.

It also deferred making a recommendation on the lifting of the moratorium on the issuance of new mineral agreements, pending the passage of a bill which seeks to overhaul the mining industry’s fiscal regime.

Under EO 79, a moratorium on new mineral agreements should be implemented until a legislation rationalizing existing revenue sharing schemes and mechanisms have taken effect.

However, the DOF clarified that while the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law increased excise taxes on mineral products, it did not fully incorporate a new fiscal regime for the mining industry.

The new fiscal regime proposed by the DOF covers other taxes and fees, such as royalty, windfall, profit, and incentives.

The DOF said these reforms are covered under Package 2 Plus of the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program, as contained in House Bill 8400.

House Bill 8400 has already been approved by the House of Representatives on third and final reading. The bill was transmitted to the Senate on Nov. 13, 2018.