KORONADAL CITY (MindaNews / 30 March) – Authorities busted another banlas or sluice mining operations in the mountains of Tampakan, South Cotabato in line with the intensified crackdown against illegal mining in the area.
Tampakan Mayor Leonard Escobillo said on Monday that the local government, together with police forces, raided a banlas site in Sitio Kampo Kilot in Barangay Pulabato during the two-day operation on March 28 and 29, following information of renewed illegal mining operations there.
Banlas or sluice mining, a highly destructive mining method, involves the pouring of large amounts of water on a mountain’s surface to loosen the soil and rocks and extract the gold ore, and then pan them with mercury.
It may be recalled that in August last year, two individuals allegedly involved in banlas operations were killed in Sitio Kampo Kilot after they were swept away by rampaging floodwaters.
No one was arrested in the latest crackdown against banlas mining in the sitio but Escobillo said Task Force Banlas seized and destroyed equipment used in the illegal mining operation such as PE pipes, flexible hoses, sluice boxes, and screens, among others.
“This coordinated effort reflects the strong commitment of local authorities and partner agencies to protect the environment and uphold the rule of law,” he said.
The banlas site is within the mining tenement of Sagittarius Mines Inc. (SMI), developer of the controversial Tampakan project, touted as the largest undeveloped copper and gold minefield in Southeast Asia.
Jose Sebua, president of the Kampo Kilot Farmers Association, earlier said that at least six individuals allegedly engaging in banlas operations in Sitio Kampo Kilot have been killed since 2012.
He lamented that banlas operations have been polluting the rivers crisscrossing the mountains of Tampakan as illegal miners have turned rivers into murky brown and waters contaminated with mercury, Sebua said.
The waters from the rivers in Sitio Kampo Kilot end up in Lake Buluan, passing through the Topland River in this city.
Lake Buluan straddles the towns of Lutayan in Sultan Kudarat and Buluan in Maguindanao del Sur.
Escobillo said the latest operation “underscores the unified stand of the community and its leaders against illegal mining and its harmful effects on the environment.”
“Continuous vigilance and cooperation remain essential in safeguarding our natural resources for future generations,” the mayor said.
South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. earlier said it “was to hard to lick banlas mining with the remote location of the site,” saying that with the accessibility of communications, those engaged in it would know when raiding teams were coming and would scamper away even before authorities could reach the place. (Bong S. Sarmiento / MindaNews)
