which negatively impact the lives of the Filipino
citizens with the grave disregard for their right to
Mining operations, such as prospecting,
exploration, building, operation, maintenance,
expansion, abandonment, decommissioning,
and repurposing of a mine, can have a variety
of direct and indirect effects on social and
environmental systems, both good and
negative. Although mining may help society in
many ways, it can also lead to conflict,
especially when it comes to above-ground and
below-ground land usage. Similar to mining,
cleanup and mitigation can restore systems
after they have altered the environment. The
Arctic and boreal regions are particularly
vulnerable to how development will affect both
social and natural systems. Native ecosystems
and indigenous peoples' populations are
frequently impacted by a variety of stressors,
such as pollution and climate change, for
example.
The Philippines has an estimated $840 billion worth
of untapped mineral resources, according to the
Mines and Geosciences Bureau of the Philippines
which is responsible for giving permits to mining
companies to do exploration of mining areas and to
commence operation. Large-scale mining is
destructive as it uses the method of open-pit mining
which entails clearing thousands of hectares of
rainforests and agricultural lands, deep excavations
to extract minerals, the use of toxic heavy metals
and chemicals to process mineral ores, and the
consumption of millions of liters of water – all of
health, life, food security, livelihood, and a clean
environment. This is the social justice issue of large-
scale mining. Large-scale mining is against the
sustainability of the environment and of the people’s
cultural identity and quality of life.
AIR
Mining has a great effect on the quality of the air.
Since mines need to blast through rock to get to an
ore, dust may be produced in the process. Coal
mines release methane, which contributes to
environmental issues because it is a greenhouse gas.
WATER
Mines use a lot of water, though some of the water
is reusable. Sulfide, when oxidized through contact
with air via mining, form sulfuric acid. This, when
combined with trace elements, negatively impacts
groundwater. This happens from both surface and
underground mines.
LAND
Trees need to be cut down in order to have a mine
built, and whole forests could be destroyed. Mining
involves moving large quantities of rock, and in
surface mining, overburden land impacts are
immense. Mining activities also may lead to erosion,
which is dangerous for the land. It destroys river
banks, and changes how the river flows, where it
flows, what lives in it, etc.
ECOSYSTEM DAMAGE
Mines are highly damaging to the ecosystems
surrounding them. Many different types of mines
affect many different types of ecosystems. For
example, deep-sea mines are at high risk of
eliminating rare and potentially valuable organisms.
Mining destroys animal habitats and ecosystems.
Pits that mines create could have been home to
some animals. Also, the activity that surrounds the
mine, including people movement, explosions, road
construction, transportation of the goods, the
sounds made, etc. are harmful to the ecosystems
and will change the way the animals have to live,
because they will have to find a new way to cope
with the mine and live around it.
DAMAGE TO LOCAL COMMUNITIES

Because of huge environmental, social, and cultural

costs, allowing mining to operate puts extreme
stress on the health, food security, and right to life
and livelihood of the Filipinos who first lived in the
area. Displacement, respiratory disease, loss of
agriculture and livelihood are just some of the things
local communities lose to mining corporations. The
promises made by mining companies to provide
scholarships and provide livelihood to the affected
people, especially with indigenous tribes are mere
palliatives in comparison to the massive
environmental destruction and long-term negative
health impacts of unsustainable mining practices.

REFERENCES:

https://environmentalevidencejournal.biomedcentra
l.com/articles/10.1186/s13750-019-0152-8

https://www.healthyoptions.com.ph/newsdigest/str
ong-immunity/irresponsible-mining-damages-the-
environment