Green group: Illegal rock quarry in Mt. Banahaw continues despite ban

LUCENA CITY—Environmentalist group Tanggol Kalikasan (TK) has expressed alarm over the resurgence of illegal rock quarrying activities on the slopes of Mt. Banahaw despite the moratorium order from Quezon Gov. Angelina “Helen” Tan.

“We’ve long been receiving reports that illegal quarrying did not stop despite the moratorium order. With the recent interception of a truckload of illegal quarry materials, it validated our information,” Jay Lim, project officer of TK, a public interest law firm based in this city, said in an interview on Sunday.

On Aug. 13, the Quezon police reported that members of the Provincial Mining and Regulatory Board (PMRB), assisted by the local police, intercepted a truck loaded with a backhoe and 18 cubic meters of boulders illegally quarried from the slope of Mt. Banahaw in Barangay Concepcion Pinagbakuran in Sariaya town. Police arrested the truck driver and the backhoe operator.

A streamer attached on the hood of the truck contained information that it was seemingly a “Local Government of Sariaya” activity for “Project: Construction of New Sanitary Landfill–Barangay Sto. Cristo.” It also bore an “ECC” (environment compliance certificate) number and a “Gratuitous Permit” number.

However, Sariaya Mayor Marcelo Gayeta, in a social media post, vehemently denied that the local government owns the truck but did not say whether or not the project was initiated by the municipality.

In a video message on his Facebook page on Aug. 14, Gayeta stressed, “I’m not violating the moratorium order by Gov. Tan.”

The Inquirer tried contacting Gayeta on his phone and social media but calls and messages were left unanswered.

‘Not enough’

The PMRB has yet to issue a report to shed light on the confiscated vehicle’s ownership.

Lim challenged Gayeta to help prosecute the suspects behind the return of the illegal quarry in Sariaya.

“His (Gayeta’s) denial is not enough. He should take decisive actions to stop the return of illegal rock mining in his area of jurisdiction,” Lim emphasized.

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On April 29, Tan issued the order declaring a “moratorium” in rock quarrying along the slopes of Mt. Banahaw in Sariaya, almost two weeks after it was exposed by TK on April 16.

Tan issued the order when Gayeta did not immediately stop the destructive activity and just initiated a signature campaign in the locality to end all rock quarry operations in the town.

Tan’s suspension of rock mining in Sariaya will last pending the result of the study to be undertaken by PMRB and the Provincial Government Environment and Natural Resources Office and the Mines and Geoscience Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Under Republic Act No. 9847 passed in 2009, Mt. Banahaw and the adjoining Mt. San Cristobal, which straddle Quezon and Laguna provinces, have been declared as protected areas.

RA 9847 mandates the delineation of buffer zones to prevent the destruction of protected areas. Mineral exploration or extraction in the buffer zones is strictly prohibited by the same law.