TAMPAKAN, Philippines In a move celebrated by anti-mining activists, local officials in the southern Philippine municipality of Tampakan have canceled the business permit for a controversial copper and gold mine, citing alleged fraud and misrepresentation by the operator, Sagittarius Mines, Inc. (SMI). “The firm does not have a permit anymore from the local government […]
MINDANAO, Philippines For environmental groups in the Philippines, 2021 went out with a big blow: on Dec. 23, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) reversed a 4-year-old ban on open-pit metal mining. The order, issued by Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu, a retired military general, overturned a prohibition on open-pit mining for copper, […]