In Tanjay City: Diocese of Dumaguete checks black sand mining

DUMAGUETE CITY, Philippines – The Social Action Center of the Diocese of Dumaguete has been closely coordinating with authorities, government offices, the private sector and other stakeholders to ensure that the controversial black sand mining in Tanjay City of Negros Oriental will not materialize.

The move was in accordance with the common stand of the four dioceses of Negros Island, including Siquijor province, opposing all forms of mining, according to Fr. Burton Villarmente, director of the SAC of the Diocese of Dumaguete.

Villarmente said that, while it is being widely publicized by the Tanjay City LGU as a dredging project, he believed this is just a cover-up of a more complex operation of mining for black sand or magnetite.

The priest on Thursday disclosed that he visited the area in Poblacion Barangay 4 recently to verify reports and for a first-hand observation of alleged operations by the contractor despite a cease-and-desist order issued by Governor Roel Degamo in the absence of a dredging permit.

The contractor, Sino-Italy Construction Philippines, Inc., had earlier claimed of having obtained the necessary requirements from the Mines and Geo-Sciences Bureau (MGB), but it has yet to acquire a dredging permit from the Capitol through the Provincial Mining Regulatory Board.

Villarmente, during his visit there, spoke to some residents in the coastal barangay, particularly in the Tambacan area, the site where the contractor has erected its staging area, where they raised their observations and concerns with him.

The priest further said he already met with the governor, the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), headed by Mercy Teves, the chairman of Poblacion Barangay 4, members of the coastal community and individuals and groups involved in the monitoring of the supposed dredging activity in Tanjay City to gather as much information as may be available.

The SAC director said he also presented the “black sand mining issue” to the priests during their regular clergy meeting of the Diocese of Dumaguete last Monday.

Villarmente said the priests in Tanjay City are now involved in the monitoring, documentation and gathering of information in the event of a petition to be raised against the said project.

He admitted, though, the constraints in the monitoring of activities by the contractor as no particular group can be at the site 24 hours a day to ensure the governor’s cease-and-desist order is not violated. But they should also be careful especially on the technical aspect so as not to get into trouble with the law, he added.

Villarmente said he requested for a meeting with the MGB of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the ENRD and the PMRB this month to further discuss the issues and other concerns regarding the dredging project.

Meanwhile, Tanjay City officials, who had entered into an agreement with the Sino-Italy contractor, has repeatedly denied the project is intended to mine black sand or margaja. They said it was a multi-million pesos project at no cost to the LGU but that the contractor can extract the magnetite or black sand from the dredged materials as payment for their services. (FREEMAN)