Wednesday, August 27, 2008 Pamb approves Hamiguitain delineation
THE Protected Areas and Management Board (Pamb) finally approved the delineation of the Mt. Hamiguitan Range and Wildlife Sanctuary.
The delineation aims to protect the diverse flora and fauna in the Hamiguitan range and, at the same time, allow the exploration and extraction of the rich mineral reserves located in the area.
Last September 2007, Australia-based mining giant, BHP Billiton, through the Pamb, embarked on the delineation project as part of its advocacy for responsible mining.
"Its main objective is to establish the boundary and buffer zone corners of the protected area as contained in Republic Act (RA) 9303 enacted by Congress and signed into law on July 30, 2004," a statement from BHP-Billiton said.
The delineation process was supervised by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (DENR-Penro) of Mati.
Actual survey of the area started last October 2007 and was jointly undertaken by experts of the said office and BHP Billiton.
The boundary and buffer zone corners stipulated in RA 9303 were marked and monumented on the ground.
The final draft of the report was presented to Pamb in its meeting last March 2008 and submitted to the DENR-Southern Mindanao. The report was approved as contained in Pamb Resolution 18-08, signed by its Chairman and for distribution to the stakeholders. (CPM)
