Comparative Legal Analysis of the NIPAS Law
The NIPAS Law and the Philippine Mining Act
The NIPAS Law and the Philippine Mining Act (Republic Act No. 7942) Salient points of the Philippine Mining Act of 1995
n The Mining Act of 1995 provides for the
areas that are open to mining operations, which includes timber or forestlands among others.
n It recognizes some areas that are closed to
mining and one of those areas are those expressly prohibited under the NIPAS law and others.
n Ancestral lands are not open to mining
without prior consent of the indigenous cultural community concerned.
n The DENR is the lead government
agency in the implementation of this act
n A local board Provincial Mining
Regulatory Board is limited only for the regulation of small scale mining
n Safety and environmental protection as
well as rehabilitation of the areas subject to mining activities are established.
n Mining contractors were granted the
rights to cut trees and timbers within the mining area as may be necessary in his mining activity. Likewise, a contractor is also given water rights aside from other rights necessary for his mining operation
Assessment The primary objective of the enactment of the NIPAS law is for the protection of the environment. On the contrary, however, the basic purpose of the Mining Act of 1995 is economic rather than environmental protection. Hence, there is more contrast in the afore-said laws than coherence. In the NIPAS law a particular area can only be considered a PA if it has been declared as such before the effectivity of the said act or after its approval. The basic principle here is that it is not a PA if there is no declaration as such. This is clearly provided under section 5 of the NIPAS Law. Hence, prior declaration of an area to be a PA is necessary before it can be considered as such. This scenario will lead to dependence on Congress to have an area be declared a protected one. It is important to note that a PA which is declared and identified as such by congress through its own Republic Act is easier to manage and to protect than that which is only identified by executive issuances and proclamations. In order to better manage a protected area, a “tailored-fit” law must be enacted. This is so because protected areas are diverse. A PA may be as vast as an entire sea or as small as a tiny island. It may be an uninhabited area or an area adjacent to a metropolis. Thus, each PA has its own specific requirements for management. On the contrary, however, under the Mining Act of 1995, under section 18, thereof, “x x x all mineral resources in public or private lands, including timber or forestlands
An In-Depth Review of the Nipas Law and Related Statutes on the Establishment and Management of Protected Areas in the Philippines
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