Government or National (Management), Corporate and Institutional (Responsibility) and Civil and...

UNIVERSITY OF STO. TOMAS FACULTY OF ARTS AND LETTERS

2ECONOMICS2

Government or National (Management), Corporate and Institutional (Responsibility)

and Civil and Community (Participatory) Model to Sustainability Economics

Forest and Mineral Resources Sectors in the Philippines

Mark Martin Celino

John Christian Ceñal Arvin Matias

Angelo Vincent Omos Karl Alen Yu

9/29/2011

NEDA’s framework, the Medium-term Philippine Development Plan (MTPDP) has been adopted by the Aquino administration as the basis of economic development and industrialization of the country for the next six (6) years. However, analysis of the present situation of the Philippine ecosystems in relation with the overall economic undertakings of the past and present regimes proves the insufficiency of the development model towards attaining long-term and sustained economic growth. Hence, this research aims to promote the involvement of national interests over the vast natural resources of the country. The result of this research is a sectoral plan recommendation of a Government or National (Management), Corporate or Institutional (Responsibility) and Civil or Community (Participatory) model to sustainability directions. This is the recommendation of a Nationalization Programme towards a Sustainable Development Framework in the Forests and Mineral Resources Sectors of the Philippines, which is a strengthening of the present sustainability development efforts of the government, community and corporate arm. It seeks to underline the Sustainability development framework in the Philippine ecosystems and socio-economic context.

Government or National (Management), Corporate and Institutional (Responsibility) and Civil and Community (Participatory) Model to Sustainability Economics 1

I. NEDA Philippine Development Plan

The Medium-term Philippine Development Plan is designed to provide a strategic plan that will be

used as a basis for the country‟s economic programs for the duration of the present administration‟s term. This plan sets goals that are projected to be achieved by the end of the term. The present Medium-term

development plan is from years 2011 to 2016 under the present Aquino Administration. The general objectives of this plan are the following:

1. A high, sustained and broad-based economic growth of 7-8 percent each year;

2. Rapid economic expansion that takes into account the country‟s large population, geographical differences, and social complexity;

3. A high economic growth that a. creates employment and draws the vast majority of the population into the economic and

social mainstream;

b. reduces mass poverty; and c. allows the pursuit of the other Millennium Development Goals (MDG).

Reaction to the Medium–Term Philippine Development Plan and to the IBON Article

As a reaction to the objectives of the plan, it is understood that their aims are for the well-being of

the society. Anything that is aimed for the betterment of the country is good. But though their goals may be

agreeable to the society, it does not equate that the society will agree with the programs they would align with these aims. The aims are most of the time good, but the question is, how will they be able to achieve

these aims without endangering the other sectors? It is very easy to generate goals for the country. To envision a well-developed society is not hard, but to get there is the difficult part. There are challenges along

the road of development. There are many temptations that should be avoided. To achieve the goals of

development would require us responsibility, focus, perseverance, and gratitude. We have gone far as a country but we are not even close to being a well-develop country.

According to the Philippine Civil Society, the Medium-Term Development Plan constructed by the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) has its five major components as its framework comprised

of macroeconomic stability, governance, infrastructure, food security and health. They considered macroeconomics as the mother framework of the entire development plan. But throughout the considerable

effort of the officials of NEDA in including the concerns of Filipino people in the implementation of Philippine

Agenda 21 to the development plan of 2011-2016, it seems that making macroeconomics as the mother framework serves as a hindrance to mobilize sustainable development in the mainstream economy of the

Philippines. The Philippine Agenda 21 serves as the country‟s path for sustainable economic development; this agenda is responsible for the betterment of each individuals, families, households and communities. This is a

plan concerning the nation‟s ecosystem comprised of coastal, freshwater, upland, lowland, and urban as well

as the ecosystems that interacts to the various land and lifescapes found therein. The advocacy is strictly imbued with respect to the empowerment of various social groups that manage economy, critical resources,

culture and society, politics and governance in accordance with foreign relations. The instance of sterilization of the integration of sustainable development to the Medium-Term Development Plan of 2011-2016 has an

enormous negative effect for the common good of people and environment.

The immense pursuit of some personalities in NEDA for making macroeconomics as the mother framework of the entire plan is quite doubtful. The general objectives of maintaining macroeconomic stability

are strictly concerned with the following: increasing of tax effort to at least 16 percent of GDP, increasing of the fiscal space and attain sustainable revenue and spending path, and the adjustment of the excise tax on

alcohol, tobacco products and petroleum. The main idea is evident, some officials of the said institution is trying to have insurance for their own fiscal concerns as stated above. By the time the excessive value added

tax will come to implementation, it will cause additional pain to the income of several employed Filipinos that

already experiencing depleting condition together with the entire society. This clearly shows that macroeconomics (as the mother framework) is not in favor for the interest of the Filipino majority; otherwise,

it reflects to the deceptive interest of few personalities behind the economic plan. In conclusion, the specific framework of the plan must be integrated in accordance with the

objectives of the Philippine Agenda 21 together with the implementing of sustainable development framework

to the mainstream economy of the country. It will be a good stepping stone for the betterment of Filipino


people if the macroeconomics as the mother framework will be replaced by the sustainable development. The

abovementioned issues and concerns of the entire society of the country must be given efficient attention in the MTPDP 2011-2016. Aside from the replacement of the framework, the executive sector must have a brief

discussion for the implementation of a national environmental plan of the Philippine government.

The comments of the IBON Foundation to the Medium-term Philippine Development Plan of NEDA (National Economic and Development Authority) explained that there are inconsistent measures that are

included in the MTPDP. According the IBON article (2011), “Such a plan however poses serious problems for the economy and the people. It misinterprets the country‟s underdevelopment and, by insisting on the discredited „free market‟ development model, will not result in higher growth nor reduce poverty. It avoids redistributing the country‟s resources and increasing the social and economic power of the poor majority. If anything it even exaggerates private profit-seeking as a means to social development to justify diverting public resources for private gain. The plan has low ambition and is not decisive in addressing the country‟s poverty, backwardness and underdevelopment.”

Their interpretation of the over-all concept of the MTPDP is credible because of what Filipinos have been experiencing in the past until the present time. The same concept of development has been practiced

up to this time. As a country, we are spending so much but the wastes are larger. We continue to focus on

economic development without bothering to resolve the problems of cultural and environmental degradation. The focus of the present economic framework remains on the privatization of capital. The free market that

they say would develop us is also tearing us down. The free market system improves our macroeconomics but the micro remains down. The poor continue to thrive on little resources while the rich continue to

celebrate in abundance.

The IBON Foundation article also mentioned the ineffective “free market” system that has been practiced through the years in the Philippines. It is ineffective for it only brought profit to the business of

export sectors to which foreign investors were delighted. The rest of the country has not clearly felt development because from the beginning, they were already deprived of development since they belonged to

the lower class. Those who belong to the lower class would not feel the slight growth of the economy since they do not earn much and also, a growing economy does not equate to a growing income for employees.

According to the IBON Foundation (2011), “They are apparently meant to be leading sectors of some sort for

the economy but, as conceived, none of them pertain to Filipino industrialization or reducing the country‟s dependence on foreign capital. If anything the main focus is simply to attract foreign investors to exploit

cheap Filipino labor (skilled and unskilled) and the country‟s natural resources (mineral and agricultural).” In this statement of IBON Foundation, it becomes clear that there is an ineffective policy-making by the

government. The government continues to boast an increasing investment from foreign industries. They say

that Filipinos would have available jobs because of these investments. But do they even think of what happens next? Their focus is only on the creation of jobs but not on the process of the work and how it is

compensated. This only shows that the government remains to be inefficient for it only works in the short-run not in the long-run. The statement also points out the exploitation of our resources by the foreign investors.

We have already been fooled by being unfairly compensated; ironically, we have also lost natural resources

plus the danger we would face for destroying our environment. It may be a growth in the economy of the country but for the people, they suffer in poverty, they lose their share of resources in the world, then they

continue to fall because of catastrophes. According to the IBON Foundation, “So while the plan is replete with motherhood statements about

creating jobs and reducing poverty it methodically avoids the most important and decisive measures for doing this. Creating jobs does not just mean giving free play for any business to make profits on the weak argument

that they hire employees anyway. It also means deliberately encouraging Filipino-owned economic activity

that creates long-term jobs and builds the national economy. Reducing poverty does not just mean giving emergency cash transfers. It also means redistributing income, wealth and assets from those who have

accumulated these towards those who have been denied them.” The statement points out the inefficiencies of the policy-making body of the country and the government departments concerned. They may have provided

jobs for numerous Filipinos and have supported many citizens to engage in the local economy, but are the

jobs provided stable or for the long-term or do they last only for a certain period and later on increase the unemployment again? Another question is, are these opportunities given by the government contributing to

the populace rather than wasting the opportunity because their businesses failed? The government should not only give opportunities to the needy or the unemployed but also monitor them for the long-run and support

them as they grow as a business. That will generally develop a local economy that is competitive enough in the global market. In addition, Cash transfer programs may be helpful to the poor Filipino family. But it should

be properly carried out to the public. The government should secure the budget allocated to Cash Transfers

from corruption. They should come up with plans that carefully monitor the distribution of this aiding program and also monitor how the budget will be used by the recipient of the aid so that the program will be effective.


II. Analysis of the Sector: Forest and Mineral Resources

2.1 Present Situation

Review of present data available on the environmental quality and natural resource degradation in

the Philippines leads that certain manifestations of the global climate crisis is already imminent at present.

Harassing the interweaving socio-economic structure, the ailing state of the different ecosystems throughout the archipelago is already alarming. As identified by Coxhead & Jayasuriya (2002), the various Philippine

environment and natural resource sectors, classified into five major interlinked and sometimes overlapping ecosystems: (1) the forest and uplands; (2) agricultural; (3) freshwater; (4) coastal and marine; and (5)

urban ecosystems, already face squander and plunder of unprecedented levels. These set of ecosystems includes significant mineral and other natural resource stocks, others biodiversity, which makes it a significant

concern. Consequently, the present situation of the Philippine environment illustrates significant and chronic

resource depletion and severe environmental degradation problems. The Center for Environmental Concerns Philippines (CEC-Phils) (2009) revealed in their study that the long-term destruction of the Planet Earth has

posit threats vis-à-vis with human rights and welfare of the population; thus, answerable for the chronic degree of poverty and hunger, unemployment, landlessness, and social unrest behind the inequalities

besetting the society at large with the phenomenon of Climate Change. Tujan (2008) parallels that “total

human demand for natural resources – both renewable and non-renewable – has indeed become a cause of alarm when by some accounts it has already exceeded sustainable limit” (p. 3). In the main, the climate

realities recently experienced confirms both issues of the massive exhaustion of resource stocks and the worsening climate change emissions of greenhouse gases. Thereby, this paper will construct on the analysis

of the present situation of the Philippine environment focusing on the two major areas of study: the forests and mineral resources sectors in the Philippines.

2.1.1 The State of the Philippine Forests

“The forests in the Philippines support one of the world‟s richest plant and animal life which continues to be the life blood by supplying the ecological and economic requirements of the country. The forests have

also supported and nurtured innumerable generations of tribal Filipinos whose lives depend on the forest‟s

well-being. (Sajise, et.al, 1996, p.22)” In fact, the Philippines is identified by Conservation International as one of the biologically richest countries in the world. It has been considered as a top biodiversity hotspot for

global conservation on account of the extent of its forests. Almost half of the total land area of this archipelagic country is covered by forests and upland ecosystems.

Traditionally, this environmental sector has served a significant role in the economy of the country for

the past decades, especially reaching its peak during the Martial law regime. It has substantially increased the GDP of the country, and considerably caused the economic growth during the Marcos era. However,

according to Carandang (2008), through the years after the 1960‟s to 1970‟s when the logging industry boomed, the forestry sector in the Philippines continuously declined in three major fronts: physical in terms of

resource depletion, economic in view of its declining economic contributions and environmental in terms of ecosystem degradation. Due to the continuing usage of its resources, the forests ecosystem in the country

became imbalanced which caused the shortage of forest covers in the country. Table 2-1 shows the extent of

loss in forest covers throughout the archipelago from the 1500‟s to 2008. It could be implied that the once profitable forests resources industry that greatly contributed to the wealth of the economy and the society

before has now departed.

Figure 2-1. Forest Cover Change in the Philippines (1500-2008) Source: Google Docs

https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.iisd.org%2Fpdf%2F2010%2Fredd_hanoi_scope.pdf




“The Philippines is already considered as one of the most endangered areas in the world. Historically

logged for timber products, today, the forests are also being cleared for farming needs and for developments to accommodate the nation‟s growing population. (http://www.biodiversityhotspots.org)” For the recent past,

forest destruction has been swift and massive. Based on the study of Lasco (n.d.) of the World Agroforestry

Centre, forest cover in the country has considerably declined at a rapid deforestation rate. This marks that the rapid decline in forest cover in 2008 (7.8 m ha) from (27 m ha) in 1500 is already warning the future of the

forest sector. Due to the continuing depletion caused by illegal loggers in the country‟s forests and even foreigners who initiate this kind of system over our natural resources, for the economic expansion and

satisfying the demands of the growing population particularly in the uplands and rural areas, our forests had been denuded intensively. Resource extraction for commercial logging both legal or illegal, the conversion of

the uplands for shifting cultivation (kaingin system) and agricultural expansion as well as the influx of upland

migration and population, and other activities of man, aside from natural factors, had been the major drivers of deforestation. Also, the system constraint being implemented by the government in national environment

policies and programs to the lumber firms and other foreign corporations is equally responsible to the current situation of the Philippine forests.

Forestry Issues

Current climate change discussions measure forest issues as a controversial aspect nowadays. In fact, it is now being considered as the cheapest and fastest way to mitigate climate change. It is because,

according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 20 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions – the main cause of climate change – accounts to the incidence of deforestation and land use change (Tauli-

Corpuz, 2010). Moreover this has already been discussed in the United Nations Collaborative Programme on

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries. Although the Philippines is not already yet a REDD state, its possibility in the country has already been determined.

According to this framework, Total forest carbon stock determined by two factors: the total forest area, and the carbon per hectare of forest (carbon density). Furthermore, it was implied that deforestation reduces

carbon stocks while reforestation increases it. This suggests that indeed, forestry issues are a major concern

for government national policy frameworks to climate change mitigation. Like other major resource management problems, forest issues are inextricably bound to and

ultimately rooted in population and poverty problems. “Forest destruction is mainly an outcome of the cumulative effects of small-scale extractive activities of impoverished and expanding population in the uplands

(Sajise, et.al, 1996, p.22).” Certain other factors that create incentives for kaingin-making, improper mining

procedures, overharvesting of forest products, forest or grassland fires and illegal logging are also considered to be one for the major causes of the destruction of natural forests in the country.

Initially, commercial Logging per se is not considered a form of forest destruction by the government. (Sajise, et.al, 1996, p.38)” It could be done in scientific and ecologically sound ways but there are some

facets in the Philippines‟ political, socioeconomic and technological life that make logging a primary agent of forest destruction and a perpetuator of social inequity. The weak and wrong policies implemented by the

government are the reasons why forests are continually diminished in the Philippines. According to Arquiza

(2009), “commercial logging has been identified as the main reason for the steep decline in forests from the 1960 to mid-80s. (Magata, Guillao, Golocan and Rovillos,2010 )”

Also, Illegal Logging is a persistent problem in Philippine forestry. This was identified as the cause of an increasing proportion of forest destruction during the late 1970‟s and 1980‟s according to the research by

(Porter and Ganapin, 1988). Having sufficient knowledge on these factors concerning on the destruction of

the forest resources in the country are important in order to do the proper reforestation of these bound resources needed by the people in the upcoming years.

Forestry Policies

Historical accounts of forest use in the Philippines reveal how massive deforestation has depleted the

once lush tropical rainforests of the country. A century of plunder of the forest resource can be traced to

factors such as conversion of forest to agricultural land, commercial logging and the pressures of population growth. However, “one important thread ... that [runs] through most of these realities [is] power politics: the

influence of political power and vested interests on forest management policies and decisions as well as on their implementation”. (Pulhin, 2002)

http://www.biodiversityhotspots.org/


The government banned the export of unprocessed hardwood logs in 1986 in an effort to stimulate

domestic processing of raw lumber into finished products. Initially this policy was successful, and products such as wood veneer became important exports. However, illegal logging and unsuccessful reforestation

programs depleted the hardwood forests, and output from lumber-processing industries declined. (Steinberg,

2009) The 1997 data on land classification show that 15.88 million hectares of the country‟s total land area

are classified as forest land. Of this figure, about 15 million hectares (94 percent) have been classified into various categories, while the remaining .88 million hectares

remain unclassified (Forest Management Bureau 1998). In 1901, the United States Commonwealth

Government issued the General Order No. 50 and strengthened by the Forestry Act of 1904 which concedes the locals to legally cut trees adjacent to their place. After 16 years, Nakpil retrieved from Makil (1982) states

The Forest Law of 1917, or Act No. 2711 established communal forests and pastures for the use of communities. The 1987 National Reforestation Program (NFP) under the Aquino administration promulgated a new reforestation policy offering market incentives and involving communities, families, NGOs and corporations in

management initiatives. In addition, a policy decision to ban all logging in old growth forests was

implemented in January 1992, shifting the production of timber to residual forests which Nakpil retrieved from Sajise (1992) ; Vitug (2000).

The issuance of Department Administrative Order (DAO) No. 22 in 1993 by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) established the Community Forestry Programme (CFP). Among

its objectives were the initiation of community-based forest development and utilization of natural resources,

and protection of the remaining primary forests with the help of local communities. (Sajise, 1998) Much of later policies plotted a greater restoration process along the forestry systems here in the

Philippines which allotted much more focus on preventing the depletion of rainforest from civilians and foreigners. Early implemented laws issued the basic incomes from woodlands to United States in order to

retain the sufficiency of wood products to Mother Commonwealth. Today, Philippine Forestry Policies became strict to individuals; hence, they encouraged a number NGO‟s and individuals to start the restoration of the

losing Sustainable Environment of the country.

2.1.2 The State of the Philippine Mining Industry

The Philippines is an archipelagic state known for its richness of natural resources. It is a country

magnificently endowed in mineral resources. Internationally, it is among the top exporters of copper iron,

chromite, nickel, zinc, silver and gold. In fact, the metallic mineral industry has been consistently among the top foreign earners (Probing our Futures: the Philippines 2000 A.D, 1980). Mining is one factor in the

Philippine economy which contributes to the strong fiscal performance of the country. The continuous exploration of these resources is becoming vital to the country‟s export progress. Moreover, the country is

already among the world‟s great mineral producers. It has been a major source of minerals for Japan, and

other industrialized countries. Considered as one of the largest mining countries, it has about 7.1 billion metric tons (BMT) of

metallic mineral reserves and 51 BMT of non-metallic deposits. As government claims, the country‟s mineral wealth, valued to be from $840 billion to $1 trillion (about ten times our GDP and 14-17 times our external

debt). Figure 2-2 shows the Philippine mining‟s contribution to GDP in PhP million at current prices. Figure 2-2. Philippine Mining’s GDP share from 1980-2006 Source: http://www.philippinesforum.com/resources/research/files/PMN_070806.


On the other hand, the cost of depletion in our mineral reserves due to its rapid rate of exhaustion

has also put the economy in a backward direction. Although, these resources are commercially significant to the industrialization and economic development of the country, its exploitation and globalization has also put

the archipelago‟s natural wealth at stake. The activities related to mining disturb the existing balance in the

environment. According to Sajise, et.al (1996), “the very nature of mining operations entails extensive use of land, air and water (p. 48).” This is the reason why the mining industry has also exacerbated the present

situation of the economy despite its strong GDP contribution. Activities such as open pit mining, quarrying and ground preparation result in large scale disturbances of environmental processes by altering land forms and

physiography, disrupting the hydrologic regime, discharging wastes into rivers, polluting water bodies with

toxic wastes, and destroying prime agricultural lands. The mining industry, in general, entails four major activities namely: exploration, mine development,

extraction, and initial processing. With this, according to Tujan (2002), “the Philippine mining industry is not fully integrated, and is basically extractive and export-oriented (p. 41).” For this reason, destroying the

balance of the ecosystem is the final result if mining has not followed the correct guidelines in terms of its exploration and utilization of the mineral resources. In addition, despite of the other natural resources, the

country‟s mineral resources are non-renewable which indicates that the mineral have a certain life span after

which they are exhausted and utilized. The reserves of various minerals in the country also vary from adequate to insufficient. However, according to (http://www.economywatch.com, n.d.), at present, “the mining

industry is facing a decline due to low metal prices, high production costs and change in mining laws.”

To sum up, in the words of Tujan & Guzman (2002), the present situation of the country‟s neo-colonial mining trade has put the whole sector as one of the world‟s top export industry until the global

decline in recent years. But in the effort of monopoly capital to expand areas for trade and investment, mining has not escaped the juggernaut of liberalization, deregulation and privatization which are the

hallmarks of neoliberal „globalization‟.

Mining Issues

The Philippine Development Plan pursued by the Aquino administration continues to flare a heated

debate in the issue of globalization of mining in the Philippines. The present regime adhered to continue the framework for development of the past administrations. For this reason, the Aquino government still

prioritizes the mining industry as a strong basis of industrialization and development. Historically, however,

foreign corporations have been in direct control of the mining industry since the age of globalization began. This kind of industrialization leading to international monopoly capitalism in the world has put the Philippine

economy a target market for long until now. The rationale behind the issue of mining in the Philippines is that it has served the neoliberal interests of countries with insatiable greed for capital accumulation and profit-

seeking.

The economic reality behind the commercialization and liberalization of the Philippine industry is that it has only worsened the state of the country‟s environmental sector. According to Tujan (2008), the

neoliberal globalization has only exacerbated the neo-colonial plunder of the natural wealth in the third world. This means that the rich-poor economic agreements and promise of long term economic growth is quite

unreal in present conditions. For instance, large-scale mining and export – one of the most significant economic sectors of the semi-feudal and semi-colonial economy of the Philippines – have not been able to

convert the natural endowments of the country‟s natural wealth to sustained economic growth; instead, it has

only caused the unsustainability state in the Philippine economy. Because, the mining sector is not yet a fully-integrated industry, it is anchored only on import-dependence. Instead of providing the country a strong

industry for mining, its export-oriented resource extraction, with rathr limited linkages to the domestic economy, has only provided the greater portion of value-added to the industrialized countries (Tujan, 2008).

Besides, this kind of industrialization provided by the extractive mining industry, has been the major

cause of some major issues today, namely: economic and social dislocation, environmental destruction, national patrimony. Take for instance, the Marcopper disaster of 1996 – it has caused the destruction of the

Philippine ecosystems vital to the subsistence and survival of communities living near these ecosystems. These are the reasons why the Filipino civil societies and groups are against the transnational mining

corporations exploitation of the country‟s mineral resources.

Mining Policies

The Philippines is endowed with rich mineral resources. Astounding as our mineral wealth may seem,

there is little reason to believe that the government, under its program to liberalize the industry, can ever realize its dream. This is, mainly because the utilization of this endowment has been geared to supply neither

http://www.economywatch.com/


the basic needs of our people nor the need to address the economy‟s backward, agrarian and pre-industrial

state. Mining has long been a major contributor to the Philippine economy. The country ranks among the

world‟s top 10 countries in the production of gold, copper, nickel and chromite. As for mineral endowment,

the Philippines is ranked second to South Africa in gold ore deposits, and ranks third in the world in terms of copper resources. In 1974 and 1980, mining accounted for 20.37 and 21.34 percent of the country‟s total

export receipts, respectively. For the period 1980- 1993, mining contributed about P 4.3 billion in tax revenues (www.saprin.org, 2006). In accordance with the International Monetary Fund (IMF)‟s structural

adjustment program, the Ramos administration batted for the full liberalization of the mining industry. It

passed the Republic Act 7942 in 1995. This law, otherwise known as the Philippine Mining Act of 1995, allowed foreign access and control in every aspect of the local mining activity from exploration, development

to utilization. The most common Mining Policy today is the Mining Act of 1995 or RA 7942 in which it states that

there are specific conditions to be considered: Local Government Empowerment

Wherein it states that the LGU‟s have the power to over watch the natural resources of the certain

area without the interruption from the government. LGU‟s have the power to abstain or give provisions to individuals in order to gain income. But the Mining Act of 1995 indicates that private corporation shall follow

strict restrictions to control the mining field. Respect and concern to certain indigenous individuals

Since most of the mining activities are based on mountain side, many indigenous groups are affected.

Because of this, Private miners shall provide appropriate respect to locals in order to retain their activities and if failure to comply will result to cease of all activities that is related to mining.

Equitable sharing of benefits of natural wealth Every mineral retrieved from mountains are obliged to show or present to officials in order to gain

benefits on the affected individuals from mining. And LGU‟s shall impose tax to provide more programs to the affected community.

Economic demands of present generation while providing the necessary foundation for

future generations Mining Industries shall limit their use of the mountain minerals in order to provide adequate supply to

future situation of economic demands and to provide minerals in order to gain beneficial products that shall provide adequate jobs.

Worldwide trend towards globalization

After dollar, the gold is one of financial currencies in order to pay or buy import products which value rather depends on the situation of international market. Most of the minerals are used to be export to sustain

many trends in global community. Protection for and wise management of the environment

Since these sources are scarce, the Government provide ample load of programs which power is to

control or secure the amount of minerals mined to protect the said mined area. The government, especially the DENR, undermines its own laws such as NIPAS and IPRA whenever it

wants to facilitate mining in the communities. Where there is strong unity and opposition from the community against mining TNCs, these TNCs and the Philippine government shift to more violent means and employ

militarization to quell the people‟s resistance. These actions result to more human rights violations, as well as the displacement and loss of livelihood among the mining-affected people such as in the case of Climax-

Arimco in Nueva Vizcaya and Toronto Ventures Inc., in Zamboanga del Norte. Mining operations have further

aggravated poverty in the country. Upon the entry of mining TNCs into their communities, people have been displaced not only physically but economically as well. The degradation of their local environment such as

rivers, croplands and forests because of mining operations has led to income loss, food insecurity and health problems.

Still the policy implemented by the central government doesn‟t secure the mineral sources of the

Philippines from the foreign businessman in which later there will be no appropriate supply of it to use for the sake of the country. Many policies have been provide by the civil societies and NGO‟s in which that is sought

to be act as a helping unit to secure or protect the area but there power is too small to create strict implementations hence they have to create alternatives to recover areas which is mined.

There is an urgent need to protect the mineral resources of the country due to its limited capacity so proper and strict policies must be implemented by the government to have an enough supply of minerals in

the near future. One concrete example of the implemented law is “the Mining Act of 1995 or also called as RA

No. 7942 which identifies areas where mining explorations can be done (Magata, Guillao, Golocan and Rovillos, 2010).” Unfortunately, timberlands and forest-land areas covered by tenure arguments such as the


TLA, CBFMA and IFMA as dictated by law are open to mineral agreements or for financial assistance

agreements and others are open to mining operations. Also, according to the study entitled “Exploiting Natural Resources: Growth, Instability, and Conflict in the Middle East and Asia”, the mining industry was

identified as one major cause of deforestation and forest degradation, as the valuable minerals are often

located in the ground beneath forests (Ibid.). This results from the clearing of the forest to access mineral deposits and to open remote forest areas for miners. As embodied in the 1987 Philippine Constitution, Article

12 of Section 2, “The exploration, development and utilization of natural resources are under the full control and supervision of the State”. It means that the government has full supervision of all the natural resources in

the country. No foreign entity shall supervise the utilization of the mineral resources without the necessary

laws implemented by the government. Hence, proper laws and regulations must be implemented by the government in order to conserve the limited mineral reserves in the country accompanied with the concept of

sustainable development so that the future generation may be able to use these mineral reserves for their betterment too. Indeed, this mining-oriented development framework has been functional since the post-

Martial law era. But despite the adherence to this development plan, nothing substantial has happened yet while until now the present regime continues to employ the same roadmap in its economic policies.

2.2 Conclusions

In the final analysis, both in the forests and mineral resources sectors of the Philippines, one thing is in common, the rapid change of a globalization-kind of industrialization, allowing foreign corporations and

their partners in the Filipino society especially those who owned the large firms, to exhaust our natural wealth

and amass the economic capital of the country derived from our environmental resource and riches. The economic cost of environmental destruction due to the massive depletion of the quality of our forests and

mineral reserves and the excessive resource utilization has aggravated the tragedy of the commons in the Filipino society in contrary with the increased GDP performance of the country‟s economy. Economic

capitalization at the expense of the present climate change crisis continues to cause the destruction of the Planet Earth, from the limitless abuse and greed of mankind to satisfy the requirements of the expanding

economy to the growing demands of industrialization side-by-side with the ever increasing needs of the global

population influx. Environmental degradation is already felt in the face of mankind‟s shock amidst the increasing

consciousness, urgency and realization of the global climate crisis vis-à-vis the global economic crisis and financial down turn and the struggle of societies, particularly of the underdeveloped/Third world states at

present. The neoliberal philosophy of an exploitative globalization arising between the rich and poor countries

is accountable to the current environmental crises. The irony behind this neoliberalism industrialization is that as the economy improves, the more infortunes harass the situations of the poor. This is how the economy

works under the present economic framework. In the main, forest and mineral resources must still be utilized in the mainstream economy but not at the detriment of the society, who at large is put in danger to the

unsustainability and underdevelopment state of the Philippine environment in relation to industrialization and

economic development.

III. Sectoral Plan 3.1 Objectives

The following are the general objectives of the sectoral plan recommendation for the forest and mining

sectors:

To ensure the strict implementation, assessment and monitoring of forests and mineral

resources management laws, policies and programmes towards a sustainable

environment.

To address malpractices in the forest and mining sectors (e.g. illegal logging and

mining, kaingin system, etc.) through joint government, corporate, and community or

civil-based involvement in the protection and conservation of these natural resources.

To develop programmes that will enable the integration of sustainable resource

utilization, environmental stewardship and conservation among the different sectors.

3.2 Programmes

Nationalization of the Forest and Mining Sectors


This program aims to promote and promulgate the rights of the Filipinos over the natural resources of

the Philippine archipelago. This program recommendation based on this research seeks the constraining of

foreign exploitation and dominion over the country‟s forest and mineral resources. What are for Filipinos must

be for the Filipinos. There are significant policies that are directed to the preservation of natural resources but

little has been done to implement and materialize these into concrete actions. This program recommendation

is just a reiteration of existing sectoral policies that are directed towards the socio-economic welfare of the

Filipino society as well as the preservation of the Philippine ecosystems. The following are the proposed

specific procedures to attain sustainable development in the forest and mining sectors of the country:

Figure 3-1. This is the

recommendation of a

Nationalization Programme

towards a Sustainable

Development Framework in

the Forests and Mineral

Resources Sectors of the

Philippines, which is a

strengthening of the present

sustainability development

efforts of the government,

community and corporate

arm. It seeks to underline the

Sustainability development

framework in the Philippine

ecosystems and socio-

economic context.

On the Governmental or National Level (Management function)

To guarantee the full legislation, critical analysis or evaluation, and the scrupulous monitoring of

existing and revised environmental policies as well as the functional constitution and enacting of

appropriate directives towards a greener revolution in the Philippine socio-economic and ecological

change which must also be strictly and properly implemented throughout all means.

The latter must be constituted on the basis of a determined political will through the inclusive

encouragement and campaign of the State by means of allocating necessary funding, support and

carrying out of specific, feasible and realistic measures regarding sustainable ecological management

objectives and plans.

The national government must as well be able to capacitate other institutions to enforce their goals –

at the executive, legislative, or departmental – towards the positioning of an integral and reorganized

national sustainability framework as incorporated to the mainstream of the political, economic, social,

cultural, and moral standpoint.

On the Corporate and Institutional Arrangement (Responsibility function)

To cooperate with government policy changes for sustainable forest and mining management through

corporate social responsibility and accountability including institutional roles and responsibilities in

their actions.


On the Civil and Community-based Structure (Participatory function)

To act in participatory with the government and institutional efforts to conserve and preserve the

archipelago‟s natural wealth while maintaining in balance the overall economic welfare of the State

and the socio-cultural well-being of the whole populace. That is, incorporating community

contributions in national environmental policies through involved sectoral decentralization of

management responsibilities.

To act as the resisting interest group of the whole functioning paradigm and thus assume the role of

check-and-balances between conflicting governmental and corporate points-of-view as well as putting

on the forefront the general well-being of the society‟s interests.

PLAN OF ACTION

1. Nationalize the forest and mineral resources sectors in the Philippines by establishing an integrated state-

owned and community-based scheme to serve in balance and justify the conflicting national and foreign

interests via constraining to alternative function or non-equity conformity the direct control and full

involvement of foreign enterprises in the overall economic self-determination and national patrimony of

the country.

2. The encouragement of corporate social responsibility and institutional roles as a vital stepping stone to

the realization of government and civil society‟s effort of recognizing the people‟s rights, cultural equality

and social equity and in the improvement of environmental quality in which these people depend their

lives on.

3. Recognize the civil society‟s resistance to the shadows of economic liberalization and neo-colonial theory

adopted by the past and present regimes as the developmental model of the country with their reforms

for a new and more appropriate paradigm shift towards a true nationalistic industrialization side by side

with sustainable development.

4. Square the economic as well as ecological functions of development by integrating in the mainstream

both the accumulation of capital and profit-seeking of the globalization of interests and the environmental

measures as a rather constraint system to the negative impacts of industrialization based on capitalist

monopolist mechanisms by protecting the rights of the nationalist interests to assess and scrutinize

foreign ownership and engagement in the national economy, particularly in the exploitation and utilization

of the country‟s natural resources (forest and mineral).

5. Prioritize instead the tenural rights of indigenous peoples and the Filipinos themselves over their natural

resources against the present insistence of the Regalian Doctrine and state ownership of the ancestral

domains and communally owned land whereas it is being replaced by foreign capital and the local elitist

appropriations to carry out investments.

6. Consider more practical and traditional practices of forest resource utilization and management instead of

industrial logging, whereas appropriate government assistance must be given out for the benefit of the

upland and rural community.

7. Regard less destructive and less disruptive small-scale mining as an alternative to extractive large-scale

mining practices and the commercialization and globalization of mining to foreign investments. Likewise,

the state must also initiate government incentives to locals in the process of localizing mining. However,

integrating mining under present conditions is still unachievable so nationalization efforts must still entail

balanced national-foreign interest considerations.

8. Capacitate employment of the Filipino poor to the advantage of the forest and mining sectors in the

context of national interests. That is to encourage business opportunities to local Filipinos whose priority

is to build sustainable development and able to lessen or suffice immediate labor problem. Subsidies may

only favor to those who are willing to prolong the entity of forestry and mining area around the

archipelago.

9. Address budget deficiencies and non-prioritization of national objectives to sustainability economics

paradigm, strengthen weak institutional capacity and resolve government accountability and transparency

problems related to the sustainable forest and mineral resource management.


10. Increase the consciousness by conducting studies and research for other recommendations for further

forest and mining sectors conservation and sustainable use.

11. Coordinate the different sectors of the society to develop a position in the macro-level decision-making of

the State.

12. Enable the establishment of an integrated national model for policy-making, community involvement and

institutional structuring for a more unified nationalization framework in economic development anchored

on the sustainability of the Planet Earth.

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