MICC recommends lifting ban on open-pit mining

The Mining Industry Coordinating Council on Tuesday recommended lifting the ban on open-pit mining, a policy implemented by then-Environment Secretary Gina Lopez and supported by President Rodrigo Duterte.

The MICC, after a meeting, said in a statement that a majority of the members of the panel voted to recommend that the Department of Environment and Natural Resources "lift the ban on open-pit mining provided that mining laws, rules and regulations are strictly enforced."

The ban on open-pit mining or the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Department Administrative Order 2017-10 was released by Lopez late April.

"In its 28th meeting, the MICC also agreed that it should be the DENR, through its Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB), that should 'take a close look and take appropriate action' on the issue involving the expansion of  24 mining areas covered by  Mineral Production Sharing Agreements (MPSA)," the Department of Finance said in a separate statement.

The MICC is co-chaired by Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu and Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III.

On the review of the first batch of 26 mines ordered either closed or suspended by Lopez, the MICC expects the preliminary results of the review in January next year and the final report by March.

The DOF said the MICC agreed to conduct another review in 2019 and succeeding ones every two years thereafter, in keeping with the MICC mandate under Executive Order No. 79 on a review of all mining operations once every two years. — Reuters with a report by Ted Cordero/BM, GMA News