Wednesday, December 06, 2006 Copper oozing in Sipalay City road By Erwin Ambo S. Delilan
IS SIPALAY a blessed City in Negros? At the height of the vehement opposition of some local folk against the entry of another mining company in their city, a miracle reportedly occurred - the Dung-i road in Barangay Manlocahoc, Sipalay, is oozing with copper!
Sipalay Mayor Oscar Montilla made the revelation during a press conference held at the Sarabia Manor Hotel and Convention Center in Iloilo City before a meeting with President Arroyo Tuesday afternoon.
"It's undeniable that Sipalay is known for its rich copper and gold deposits underground. In fact, this was the reason why two mining companies had ventured in the past to explore in our city. There is another one coming. But this is the first time that our people saw the oozing copper along the road in Sitio Dung-i," Montilla told reporters.
Asked for the meaning or sign of this circumstance, the mayor said, "I don't really know," adding "What I know is that Colet Mining aims to produce 40,000 tons of copper per day."
Colet is proposing to operate copper mining in Manlocahoc, Sipalay for 20 years starting on 2008.
Aside from Colet, Maricalum Mining Corporation (MMC) in Barangay San Jose, is also confident that when they resume mining next year they can still dig an ample supply of copper.
The supply is expected to last 50 years. The controversial MMC has been mining in Sipalay since 1958 but ceased its operation three to four years ago due to a labor dispute and the complaints lodged by environmental groups in the province.
"With these projections of both Colet and MMC, we can conclude that the city still has plenty of copper deposits which will also mean lots of gold deposits for us," Montilla said.
He explained, "it is just normal for Sipalay to have these high-value minerals because it lies in the fault line of Panay Gulf. And in case of earth movement, these kind of minerals form a deposit underground."
What is copper?
Copper is a chemical element known also as a ductile metal with excellent electrical conductivity. It used extensively as an electrical conductor, thermal conductor, as a building material, and as a component of various alloys.
It is also an essential nutrient to all higher plants and animals, a research revealed, and have played a significant role in the history of mankind.
Civilizations in places like Iraq, China, Egypt, Greece and the Sumerian cities all have early evidence of using copper, and Britain and the United States also have extensive histories of copper use and mining.
During the Roman Empire, copper was principally mined on Cyprus, hence the origin of the name of the metal as Cyprium, "metal of Cyprus," later shortened to Cuprum.
A number of countries, such as Chile and the United States, still have sizeable reserves of the metal, which are extracted through large open mines.
Nevertheless, the price of copper rose rapidly quintupling from a 60-year low in 1999 largely due to increased demand.
This metal has come in to limelight on account of high volatility in prices.
Mining potential
Montilla said 80 percent of the 41,000 hectares of land in Sipalay are covered with mining claims.
But of the three mining companies (two inactive) at present), each only utilized 400 hectares for actual mining.
These three firms are the MMC in Barangay San Jose, Philex Gold in Barangay Nabulao and Colet in Manlocahoc.
And despite the negative comments hurled against the mining operations in Sipalay, Montilla said he is thankful to mining especially that of the MMC "because it caused heavy siltations of mine tailings which formed into a natural land mass which measures 43 hectares."
"This is now out prime relocation site that totally solved our squatter problem in Sipalay," the mayor said.
More sites
Asked if Sipalay City can afford to host two mining companies in the next two years and at the same time promote their beautiful beaches and some of its hidden paradise, Montilla said, "We can!"
Montilla said so long as the mining companies adhere to responsible mining, there will be no cases of environmental destruction and the promotion of tourism will not be hampered.
As to the case of MMC, which was lambasted for allegedly causing havoc to the environment, Montilla said that the government then did not require an environmental compliance certificate (ECC).
"But now, with a lot of environmental rules and the Mining Act, I think all worries about mining operations and environmental problems will be contained," Montilla said.
Montilla signified Tuesday his intention to welcome the planned re-operation of MMC in their City.
"As long as they can settle their labor problem (with about P170 million in payables for back wages of its employees and P60 million in tax liability), then there's no way to block it," he said.
In the case of Colet, Montilla also denied reports that its present exploration in Manlocahoc area causes soil erosion and landslide.
The mayor tagged these allegations as "baseless and unfounded."
"What is important for us right now is for Colet to secure first an ECC from the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources (DENR) before anything else," Montilla said.
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