Education officials’ review TVIRD’s environment, social initiatives
Helen Climaco, Department of Education (DepEd) District Supervisor of Tungawan
in Zamboanga Sibugay, had been hearing a lot of unflattering things about the
environmental stewardship and human rights record of a mining company operating
in adjacent Zamboanga del Norte province. But when she and her fellow education
officials toured the company’s facility in Canatuan some 50 kilometers
northwest of her town, they were pleasantly surprised to see with their own
eyes that, contrary to reports, TVI Resource Development Philippines, Inc. (TVIRD)
is doing its best to meet society’s expectations of a responsible miner.
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TVIRD Canatuan Metallurgist Shiela Arlenda (in white hat) briefs the Tungawan education officials on the mining and milling production flow. During the tour, they saw a totally different picture: a bright future for the Subanons, and an environment that is being well taken care of.
“We appreciate the reforestation program being undertaken by this Company,”
Climaco commented. “We have learned so much (during our tour of the operations).
There had been misconceptions regarding (the Company’s alleged mishandling
of) toxic materials or mine wastes. They are not true after all.”
Maria Nelia Ibarra, administrator of Tungawan Central Elementary School, pointed
out TVIRD’s positive socio-economic contributions to its host communities:
“We are glad to note that TVIRD is bringing greater opportunities to the
Subanon people within and beyond the (Canatuan) area in terms of employment,
livelihood and literacy.”
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TVIRD Social Commitments Program Officer Rocelle Magpayo (extreme
right), discusses the company’s education initiatives with the visiting school
administrators. TVIRD’s efforts are geared towards building communities
that are not only more developed but, more importantly, sustainable.
As the wife of the number one councilor and former three-term mayor of Tungawan,
Climaco has been exposed to news and information – albeit many of them
unverified — about events and developments in the Zamboanga Peninsula. Canatuan,
apparently, had been a constant subject of misinformation.
Climaco had shared the fears of the different heads of schools under her supervision
that their town might be affected by toxic spills from Canatuan in Siocon municipality.
Their fears were generated by reports from anti-mining advocates that TVIRD
allegedly does not handle its wastes properly. The educators were also told
that the firm has committed human rights violations against the Subanon indigenous
people (IP) of Canatuan. After a series of consultations with educators in Tungawan,
Climaco decided to lead a mine tour delegation.
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TVIRD Public Affairs Officer Rene Patangan (extreme left) explains
the rehabilitation and reforestation programs of the company near the Canatuan
mine waste dumpsite. "There had been misconceptions regarding (the company’s
alleged mishandling of) toxic materials or mine wastes. They are not
true after all."
During the tour, they saw a totally different picture: a bright future for
the Subanons, and an environment that is being well taken care of. They saw
a mining operation that produces value not only for the company, but for its
community as well; with enhanced Social Commitment Initiatives beyond the basics
of health care, education, and livelihood training; with efforts geared towards
building communities that are not only more developed but, more importantly,
sustainable.
The educators took particular notice of TVIRD’s education program. The
company has “adopted” five public schools under DepEd’s Adopt-a-School
Program. It sends a total of 38 poor but deserving Subanon youths to different
schools and universities through TVIRD’s Subanon College Scholarship Grant;
bankrolls the salaries of 13 teachers, some of whom are Subanons themselves;
and conducts Functional Literacy Programs for adults and out-of-school youths
in cooperation with the DepEd Division of Siocon.
“It is nice to know that TVI(RD) is not here just to mine but also to
help the communities, especially the IPs,” Louie Salibay, a nurse at the
DepEd Tungawan District Office.
During the tour, they were also impressed with the waste management initiatives
of the company, particularly at the “waste dump” site, where earth
materials with no mine value are stocked. There they saw the rehabilitation
and reforestation activities currently being undertaken in the area.
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Yulo Perez, TVIRD Vice President for Philippine Operations,
during the exit conference with the visitors, talks about the company’s
transparency policy as Helen Climaco, Department of Education (DepEd) District
Supervisor of Tungawan, Zamboanga Sibugay (lady in white at right), listens.
“It is nice to know that TVIRD is not here just to mine but also to help the
communities, especially the IPs,”
“This only shows that TVIRD is giving greater emphasis in preserving
and rehabilitating the environment,” one of the delegates said while taking
pictures of the site.
Yulo Perez, TVIRD Vice President for Philippine Operations reiterated during
the exit conference the Company’s transparency policy with the education
officials: “Our doors are always open to people who wish to see how we
do our operations.”
TVIRD, by virtue of a Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (MPSA) with the
Philippine Government, produces gold and silver from a 508-hectare property
within the Subanon ancestral domain at Canatuan. The Company is expected to
commence its copper-zinc operations in mid-2008.