CALLS to protect Sibuyan Island from destructive mining activities continue to gain support from various stakeholders.
Last week, led by Sibuyan’s local officials, a petition appealing to protect Sibuyan, signed by over 31,000 individuals from Romblon, was formally turned over to Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Juan Miguel T. Cuna.
The petition is in support of calls to protect Sibuyan Island, particularly from large-scale metallic mining, and to act on the pending petition to cancel the Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (MPSA) of Altai Philippines Mining Corporation (APMC).
Of these, 27,000 signatures came from Sibuyan Island-roughly 77 percent of the island’s voting population-while another 4,000 came from Tablas Island, demonstrating broader province-wide support for Sibuyan’s protection.
The signatures were formally turned over by Romblon Gov. Trina A. Q. Firmalo-Fabic, Sangguniang Panlalawigan Member Cary V. Falculan, and San Fernando Mayor Fernando U. Marin, together with representatives of Bayay Sibuyanon Inc., Sibuyanons Against Mining, Bantay ng Kalikasan ng Sibuyan, Nature Ambassadors of Sibuyan, and Alyansa Tigil Mina.
Also submitted were recent resolutions and official actions from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Romblon; Sangguniang Bayan of San Fernando; the municipalities of Banton, Concepcion and Odiongan; and barangays Taclobo and España.
Faith-based statements and resolutions were likewise presented from the Romblon Ecumenical Forum Against Mining (Refam), Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) Diocese of Odiongan, Clergy of the Diocese of Romblon, and Romblon Diocesan Council of the Laity (RDCL), together with statements from Catholic dioceses surrounding Sibuyan representing an estimated 9.6 million Roman Catholics. The turnover continues a long history of province-wide opposition to destructive mining.
In 2012, 128,346 signatures gathered from across the province of Romblon were also formally submitted to the DENR, demonstrating that the present call builds on more than a decade of organized public action to protect the province’s islands and natural resources.
The delegation urged DENR to act on the pending petition for cancellation of APMC’s MPSA 304-2009-IVB, citing Sibuyan’s exceptional biodiversity and watersheds, local government actions, sustained community opposition, and the province’s policy direction toward environmental conservation, protection and rehabilitation, ecologically sustainable development, and climate and disaster resilience.