By Madelaine B. Miraflor

A policy limiting the area where miners can operate is now effective, forcing mining companies to start their rehabilitation process way ahead of their planned schedule.

Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu finally signed this week the Department Administrative Order (DAO) on progressive rehabilitation, which aims to minimize the disturbed area of a mining project at any given time.

The order covers all Mineral Agreements (MAs), Financial or Technical Assistance Agreements (FTAAs), and other similar mining tenements having surface metallic mines under development, construction or operating stage.

Under the DAO, if a miner is producing 1 million metric tons (MT) or less, they can only extract within 50 hectares of their mine sites, while those producing around 1 million to 3 million MT are only allowed to operate within 60 hectares of their tenements.

Those producing 3 million to 5 million MT, on the other hand, can only excavate within 70 hectares of their contract areas, while those with annual production of 7 million MT but less than 9 Million can only extract within 90 hectares of their mine sites.

The new policy also requires mining firms to incorporate additional environmental measures such as creating topsoil and subsoil management; the establishment of buffer zone management; and setting aside a pier stockyard as temporary stockpile area for ore shipment.

Furthermore, temporary revegetation or progressive rehabilitation shall be implemented immediately on the disturbed areas exceeding the maximum disturbed area limit.

Since the DAO will force mining companies to make major adjustments in their operations, they already began with their respective “preparatory works” as early as June in order to be able to comply with it.

Environment Undersecretary Jonas Leones earlier said that non-compliance of the DAO — which would be applicable to all mining operations, even the existing ones that already have feasibility studies — can result to suspension and closure.

Based on the existing laws, miners are only required to implement their final mine rehabilitation or decommissioning plan at least five years prior to the end of their mineral agreements, which normally have a term of 25 years.

Leones said the DAO “doesn’t violate the rights of the miners” because “in the first place, they are required to rehabilitate and that the new order is just requiring them to adjust it”.

“They really have to adjust,” Leones said. “This order really intends to cause a shake-up the industry”.

Aside from progressive rehabilitation, the DENR is also looking at increasing the rehabilitation funds that are required of miners.

Under the Philippine Mining Act, a Mine Rehabilitation Fund (MRF) shall be deposited as a trust fund in a government depository bank and shall be used for physical and social rehabilitation of areas and communities affected by mining activities and for research on the social, technical and preventive aspects of rehabilitation.

Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP) Executive Director Ronald Recidoro said before that miners are now ready to comply with the new order.