The ban on open-pit mining is expected to be lifted soon as the draft implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of Executive Order No. 130 have been finalized for the approval of Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu.
Wilfredo Moncano, director of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB), confirmed in a text message that after consultations with miners and environmental advocates, the MGB submitted on Monday the proposed IRR to Cimatu for his signature.
Moncano noted that a repealing clause in the draft IRR will lift the four-year ban on the use of open-pit mines to extract minerals, imposed by the late former environment chief Regina Paz Lopez.
While the IRR alone cannot …
Keep on reading: Lifting of ban on open-pit mining seen