In Partial Fulfillment of The Course Requirements In Earth Science (SCX008) One Environmental problem And Action Plan

Submitted by: Abellanosa, Hannah Eulalia B. Babiera, Nora Pabroa, Den Ryan Submitted to: Ms. Bernadeth Escasinas

March 2013

Cagayan de Oro City is the capital city of the province of Misamis Oriental in the north-southern Philippines. It serves as the regional center for the Northern Mindanao (Region X), and is part of a growing Metropolitan Cagayan de Oro. It is bordered by the municipalities of Opol to the west of the city and Tagoloan to the east. According to the 2010 Census of Population in the Philippines, Cagayan de Oro has an estimated population of 602,088 (2.78%) inhabitantsmaking it the 10th most populous city in the Philippines. It is also one of the highly urbanized cities in the country. It is called a city in Bloom, Blossom and Boom. The confluence of factors: rapid population increase; rich agricultural and forest lands; minerals; scenic tourist spots; bodies of water; good infrastructures and utilities; the concentration of health, educational and research centers; typhoon-free climate and favorable peace and order condition - makes the City of Cagayan de Oro a favorite investment and tourist haven and one of the fastest growing cities in the country. Despite of its success, its not an excuse of not suffering from a widely so-called environmental problem and one of this is the mining. Mining is the foundation of industrial civilization. It is the process of extracting minerals like gold, silver, copper, nickel and uranium (metallic) and salt, potash, coal and oil (nonmetallic) formations that concentrate naturally in the earth. In contrast, one of the main criteria used to define illegal mining is the absence of land rights, mining license, exploration or mineral transportation permit or of any document that could legitimate the on-going operations. Illegal mining can be operated in the surface or underground.

Furthermore, the environmental impact of mining includes erosion, formation of sinkholes, loss of biodiversity, and contamination of soil, groundwater and surface water by chemicals from mining processes. In some cases, additional forest logging is done in the vicinity of mines to increase the available room for the storage of the created debris and soil. Besides creating environmental damage, the contamination resulting from leakage of chemicals also affect the health of the local population. Mining companies in some countries are required to follow environmental and rehabilitation codes, ensuring the area mined is returned to close to its original state. Some mining methods may have significant environmental and public health effects. Erosion of exposed hillsides, mine dumps, tailings dams and resultant siltation of drainages, creeks and rivers can significantly impact the surrounding areas, a prime example is , at the height of Typhoon Pablo in December, a barge believed to be doing illegal mining activities in the hinterland barangays of the city was swept by the current and got stuck in a steel bridge in Barangay Iponan, which caused flooding in nearby areas . In areas of wilderness mining may cause destruction and disturbance of ecosystems and habitats, and in areas of farming it may disturb or destroy productive grazing and croplands. In urbanised environments mining may produce noise pollution, dust pollution and visual pollution. Moreover, the Philippines provides a Republic Act 7942 or the Philippine Mining Act of 1995, Republic Act 7076 or the Peoples Small-Scale Mining Act of 1991, and city Executive Order 074-2012 issued by Emano still PNP-Northern Mindanao Director Gil J. Hitosis said there are at least 12 mining operators in Cagayan de Oro who are given corresponding permits. He said 23 operators acquired permits to quarry from the local

government units (LGUs), but the permits of the six operators have expired. He said city officials denied the existence of illegal mining in Cagayan de Oro. Some illegal mining found where in Iponan river, Barangay Pagalungan. To resolve these issues on illegal mining in the city, we came up a list of action plan. There are: The government should issue permit to the company who following and qualifies the rules on Philippines Mining act. The government police and official should be watchful against illegal mining. And to those who are caught should have respective punishments by the law. End ecocide. Ecocide is the extensive damage to, destruction of or loss of ecosystem(s) of a given territory, whether by human agency or by other causes, to such an extent that peaceful enjoyment by the inhabitants of that territory has been or will be severely diminished. Preserve life. Educate people about the importance of preservation of nature. As it has been said that knowledge is power.