Black-sand miners back in Ilocos Sur despite ban

Miners are allegedly back to extracting black sand in Ilocos Sur just three months after the Department of Justice filed criminal raps against 31 Chinese nationals  found engaging in the illegal trade.

 

In a report aired on "24 Oras" Friday evening, several residents in Caoayan town claimed to have spotted a number of ships reportedly owned by Wellresource Mining Co. off the coast.

A check by GMA News showed five vessels nearby that day.
 

 

Wellresource Mining Co. was earlier identified by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) as one of the companies engaged in black sand mining.

 

Black sand mining in Ilocos Sur has long been declared an illegal activity in "no-go zones" – a 200-meter strip of shore area that is closed to mining activities.

 

Last May, MGB ordered a blanket moratorium on permits for processing black sand in the province after receiving complaints from several groups that some mining companies have been collecting sand illegally.

 

A raid by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and MGB in August led to the filing of criminal charges against 31 Chinese nationals caught mining black sand in towns in Ilocos Sur. 

 

MGB geohazard mapping had shown that coastal areas are vulnerable to wind and water erosion. Sand mining in such areas are prohibited.

 

But despite the ban, miners are still lured to gather black sand because it is a valuable commodity.  Black sand, which abounds along the coasts of several provinces in the northern Philippines, contains iron and metallic minerals for making steel.

 

Local fisherfolk said that since the ships reappeared in their area, they have been unable to catch as much fish as they normally did. They said mining black sand depletes the minerals found in seawater, which attract and nourish fishes.

 

Mayor Germelina Goulart admitted the local government issued a permit to Wellresource Mining, but it was just to dredge a portion of the Abra River.

 

She said an investigation will be conducted to determine how the company's operations led to black sand mining.

 

The town's barangay captain has declined comment on the presence of Wellresource's ships in the area.

 

MGB director Leo Jasareno said in an earlier report that the agency has recommended blacklisting Wellresource Mining. — Xianne Arcangel/JDS, GMA News