Dolomite quarrying in Cebu province. (DENR photo)
Cebu reported that at least 48 have perished in the province on Monday and Tuesday as Typhoon Tino (international name: Kalmaegi) barreled through the entire Visayas region, bringing with it strong winds, heavy rains and unprecedented flooding.
Cebu governor Pamela Baricuatro said the province is suffering its worst flooding in recent memory.
A farmers’ group said the never-before-seen flooding in the entire province reveals the dangers of unregulated quarrying. “These impacts are not entirely caused by natural disasters but by decades of environmental degradation,”KMP chairperson Danilo Ramos said.
Ramos’ conclusion mirrored an earlier Cebu City Council statement noting “unabated” quarrying in upland barangays are causing flooding downstream in areas such as Metro Cebu as well as Cordova, San Francisco, Catmon, Danao City, Talisay City and Tudela.
Dolomite – used in construction, as soil conditioner, and in industries as a source of magnesium in the glass, steel, and chemical industries –is heavily quarried in the island province. It hosts mining companies such as the Dolomite Mining Corporation (DMC), Philippine Mining Services Corporation (PMSC), Apo Land and Quarry Corporation, Apo Cement, Taiheiyo Cement, Century Peak Cement, Mabuhay Filcement Inc., Republic Cement, and Eagle Cement.
Quarry sites have suffered collapses in the past, the latest of which happened last month that led to the death of an 18-year old worker in Camotes Island. The biggest and deadliest landslide linked to dolomite quarrying in Cebu occurred in September 2018 in the City of Naga that resulted in 78 deaths. It also left five people missing.
Last July, the Cebu provincial government temporarily suspended all quarry operations province-wide for review. Despite recent local government directives suspending quarry and earth-moving activities however, quarrying remains widespread in Cebu, KMP reported.
Quarry operations are also present in municipalities and cities such as Asturias, Balamban, Bogo City, Carcar City, Dalaguete, and Toledo City where limestone, sand, and gravel for construction are also extracted.
Worsened by plunder, neglect
“The devastation brought by Typhoon Tino is a grim reminder of the results of irresponsible and indiscriminate quarrying. We are witnessing a disaster worsened by plunder and government neglect,” KMP said.
The farmers group said the latest disaster underscores how decades of quarry operations involving large-scale soil extraction, mountain cutting, and watershed degradation have left many communities highly vulnerable to landslides and flooding.
These risks, the group added, have been aggravated by the Typhoon’s Tino’s heavy rainfall. PAGASA reported that Tino dumped 183 mm of rain or equivalent to almost a month and a half’s worth of rain in November.
KMP said large-scale quarrying operators in Cebu should be held liable and implement long-term rehabilitation measures to restore watersheds and protect communities. The group also urged the national government to consider a ban on destructive quarrying and prioritize community-led rehabilitation programs.
Ineffective, questionable flood control projects
The group also assailed the ineffective flood control projects in the province, pointing out that as much as P7.3 billion have been spent on one congressional district alone. “Malala ang pag-ulan at pagbaha dahil sa Tino, pinalala pa ng mga ghost, substandard at hindi natapos na flood control projects,” it said.
KMP said that based on available data, there are 414 flood control projects in the province under the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. government. “Sa 6th District ng Cebu (Lapu-Lapu City, Mandaue City, Consolacion, Cordova) mayroong P7.3 bilyon na flood control projects mula 2022–2025 kasama ang 87 proyekto,” it said.
Cebu had been granted P25.521 billion in flood-control projects under Marcos, the group added. It also said that in Cebu City alone, P3.8 bilyon have been spent in just three years. | via KODAO PRODUCTIONS
