The Gold Rush

JULY - SEPTEMBER 2011

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July to September 2011

The Gold Rush:

How much are we willing to pay?

XAVIER MAGAZINE JULY - SEPTEMBER 2011

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The Price ofG O L D

The Iponan River is orange. This waterway, which bounds Cagayan de Oro in the west and has its headwaters in the provinces of Bukidnon and Lanao, has been generously receiving mining runoffs for decades since the locals became impatient with traditional mining methods, and started using large pipes, gas pumps and machines to speed up their search

for precious yellow metal.

Mining for gold has been a source of livelihood for the people living in the uplands of Cagayan de Oro City. In the early days, the locals worked with pans to mine, but as new technologies were introduced by outsiders, hydraulic mining or hydraulicking became the top choice as it provided a quicker way to look for placer gold which abounds in the uplands of the city. This method involved blasting hillsides with huge volumes of water siphoned from the Iponan River through water hoses, then released through sluices where the gold got separated from the rocks and gravel. Although it offered a faster way of finding gold, it was also the most devastating as large chunks of rocks were washed downhill and carried to the streams that feed back to the Iponan River causing the river to turn turbid over time from siltation, erosion and sediment deposition.

As a consequence, illegal small-scale hydraulic mining operations were stopped in1996; yet they found new life at the turn of the new millennium as prices of gold hovered at record highs. Despite efforts of the local government to curb mining operations, illegal small-scale mining has continued apace, and the Iponan River has become a lightning rod for criticism against unrestrained mining activities.

Researchers at Xavier University are assessing the impact of hydraulic mining on the Iponan River and its surrounding communities. The study, funded by the Kinaadman Research Center, the University’s arm for research and publication, looks at the issue from five angles: biological and physio-chemical, community resource variation, cultural and geopolitical, landslide risk assessment, and soil analysis and agricultural assessment.

As gold prices reach record highs, mining operations are flourishing anew, but at what cost?

By Vanessa Gorra


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Rapid biological, physical and chemical assessment of the Iponan River and its tributaries show poor ratings in terms of vegetative protection and riparian (riverbank) vegetative zone width – the land directly adjacent to the river – resulting in erosion, one of the world’s biggest environmental problems, and bank instability. As the banks erode into the streams, sediment and nutrient loads increase and water quality diminishes.

One result of erosion is the high concentration of total suspended solids (TSS) – the solids in water that can be trapped by filters – recorded in the Iponan River and its tributaries. Since high TSS can block light from reaching submerged vegetation, photosynthesis is reduced and bottom dwelling plant growth is inhibited. Aquatic life is also adversely affected as settling sediments can occupy spaces that could have served as homes for aquatic organisms.

High TSS can also mean higher concentrations of pollutants. The researchers observed the likelihood of organic pollution in the Iponan River and its tributaries, which could affect the 1,014 macroinvertebrates living there. Water samples from six sampling sites tested positive for faecal matter contamination and would thus require disinfection to become safe for drinking.

Severe erosion is found in Tumpagon and Pigsag-an, barangays ensconced on mountainous terrains with varied landscapes and pronounced slopes. According to researchers from the College of Engineering, these areas fall within the landslide risk area. Hydraulic mining has changed the natural landscape and stability of the mountain. Pits created from flush mining (about 50 of them) left craters of 100-500 cubic meters, which could result in massive mudflows to the Iponan River. Silt deposits are estimated to be around 123 metric tons per year from the upstream barangays. The volume of bedload – particles that flow through the stream along its bed – is around 44,000 cubic meters. More than 80 percent of these materials are larger than 1 millimeter and more than 50 percent are larger than 6 millimeters. They are mostly gravel that got transported from the quarries in the midstream and downstream barangays. This great deal of sediments has helped turn the once clear water of the Iponan River into the brown, grain-filled watercourse it is today.

In a place where gold supposedly comes out of the earth, the people still only have enough to make ends meet. Rapid appraisal of the socio-economic, socio-cultural and geo-political situation of the people living in the barangays of Tumpagon and Tuburan discloses that 90 percent of the households earn just enough to support their daily needs, and that only a mere 10 percent save. Majority of the locals here subsist on mining. The residents were originally farmers who left farming 10 years ago because of low income, ranging from P2,000 to P3,500 per month. By contrast, each family member could earn between P200 and P300 per day doing small-scale mining activities.

Even in the highly agricultural community of Pagatpat, where FGD participants claim that

about 50 percent of the people depend on farming, survey results show that half of the population is actually engaged in quarrying. The small percentage of households engaged in farming find supplemental income from quarrying.

Mining is a family affair. The men dig and haul dirt while the women and children segregate rocks from the hauled dirt. Body pains from injuries are a common complaint. Sometimes, there are deaths from accidents, although most of the time these are unreported. In exchange, families are able to serve food on the table, send their children to school, build larger and sturdier houses and buy furniture and new clothes. Sometimes, they invest in agriculture.

Life for the inhabitants revolves around economic survival. Thus, at every opportunity, they shoot for the goldmine, scouring the earth for every last deposit. Economic development still takes priority despite glaring environmental degradation. Locals cite the seasonal nature of agriculture, lack of capital, limited job opportunities and low levels of education as justifiable reasons for resorting to illegal mining activities, undermining their mountains and river system.

Ironically, the answer that offers the best solution also happens to be the one that poses the most challenges. Agriculture still holds the key to growth. Residents

of these areas are natural agriculturists, having honed their farming skills through years and years of practice and experience. Yet, they complain of being hampered by low agricultural productivity because they cannot afford to buy farm inputs and high yielding seed varieties. More importantly, unsafe road conditions and irregular transportation from the uplands to the city are the primary reasons residents prefer flush mining to farming where they need to transport farm products to the city to sell.

Fighting these bottlenecks won’t be easy. For a start, knowing the biophysico-chemical conditions of the land is imperative in raising its productivity. Agricultural assessment by researchers from the College of Agriculture reveals that organic matter and slope are the most important factors affecting variability of the agro-ecosystem along the Iponan River. Suffice to say that these two factors affect land productivity and need to be considered in determining agricultural management options. Interventions aimed at increasing agricultural productivity, therefore, need to be site specific and should foremost address the effect of organic matter and slope. Farming, apparently, is not a simple process.

Then, there’s the need for more agricultural research and extension programs that focus

on crops and farming systems suited to small land sizes, provision of quality water supplies, improved access to markets and micro credits, and alternative income generating activities to wean the community from their dependence on mining. All these things need to be put in place.

Considering the complexity and the enormous work that must be done, the success of interventions rests largely on multiple stakeholders – the barangay authorities, government agencies, local communities, academe, civil society, the

church – coming together. For the worse or for the better, what confront us are, on one hand, the accelerating environmental problems affecting both upland and lowland communities in the larger context of climate change, and the growing pressure on the upland population to earn incomes amid deteriorating economic conditions; and on the other hand, there is the fast development of possible solutions as more and more sects get involved in the crusade to save our environment. Which will win the race? r

Cover Story Cover Story

Mining is a family affair.

The men dig and haul

dirt while the women

and children segregate

rocks from the hauled

dirt. Body pains from

injuries are a common

complaint. Sometimes,

there are deaths from

accidents, although most

of the time these are

unreported.


28 29Feature Alumni

Xavier University High School class

of 1993 graduate Jericho Valjusto

Vamenta took home the grand prize

in the Oil on Canvass category of

the 2011 Metrobank Art and Design Excellence

(MADE) awards.

MADE is an annual art competition

recognizing the outstanding work of young

but promising sculptors, architects and

interior designers.

Vamenta’s winning painting, “Ang Mrs Eden

Maleta sa Mundo ni Tatang Danilo,” depicts

the contemporary issue of changing gender

roles and the rise of stay-at-home husbands

(housebands). His work was recently featured

in the September 2011 issue of Lifestyle Asia

Magazine.

Besides being the grand winner in MADE,

Vamenta is also a national finalist in the 2011-

2012 Philippine Art Awards.

Here, he talks about his artistic background,

his inspiration and art as a medium for

engaging social issues.

When did you discover your artistic ability?

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been

interested in drawing and clay modeling. As

you may know, my father is an artist (Jericho is

the son of Museo de Oro’s Albert Vamenta);

watching him working and doing art perhaps

influenced me greatly.

What is your background?

Having finished my grade school and

high school at Xavier, I took up visual

communication [in the College of ] Fine Arts

at UP Diliman. It was a course centered on

advertising, animation, photography… all

related to commercial art making. I studied

my course for only two years.

How did you get started as a professional

artist?

I was with Warner Studios and Mixing

Plate Graphic Restaurant. I also did some

apprentice time with master sculpture Jose

Mendoza. I explored comics illustration

and graphic designs. When I was still in CDO,

I and my girlfriend opened Karumata Bartique,

an art venue and bar that survived for around

3 years. We had to give it up to forward our

career in the arts here in Manila. I’ve been

teaching summer art classes at the Museo

de Oro for 16 years. It was just this year that I

declined to teach [because of ] a project with

the Archdiocese of Tuguegarao, Cagayan

Valley. We [did] a relief sculpture memorial that

was the landmark of the celebration of their

centennial as an Archdiocese.

Your winning painting depicts the increasing

phenomenon on “housebands.” What

inspired you to paint something on the

reversal of gender roles?

It is important for me to depict certain social

issues that we might overlook. As much as

possible, I wanted to present the issue and

not take personal sides or [show] biases.

Such relationships might be beneficial and

symbiotic to certain couples.

What [encouraged] me to make the work

was that this [phenomenon of housebands]

is an actual everyday occurrence in the

neighborhoods of Manila. One afternoon,

while I was buying merienda, I overheard

some children shouting or calling to a man,

alias Tatang Danilo. They were stating that his

wife was arriving, the Mrs Eden Maleta. The

difference in their status and activity greatly

undermines the way these two individuals

are labeled. Though they may belong to the

same household, society creates these levels

of presentation. The husband could have

surrendered a career to take [charge] of the

household or wanted the wife who loved her

job so much to continue working. There are so

many speculations. The important point that

I wanted to make is that gender associated

activities are passé. There are good things

about this arrangement as well as negative

points. Our society is centered on status and

labels that our individualities are sometimes

surrendered.

Are your paintings mostly about social

issues?

I believe an artist has a greater responsibility

to portray the times he’s lived in. It is not

enough to make beautiful pictures. The artist

has this role of adding up to the chronicles of

his time ideas, outlooks, sentiments. A work

must have substance and the way I tackle this

is through the most evident. Social issues

reflect the times. The times we’re in now is

getting more and more interesting. Change

is fast, so much to do and to talk about. I’m

very fortunate that I’m a Filipino. Every island

has a different culture and that would make

for interesting works. The comparative visual

depiction of a place [is a way of ] praising its

culture. r

Is there an XU alumnus/a you would like us

to feature? Email [email protected].

Q&A with award-

winning artist and

XU alumnus Jericho

Vamenta

“Ang Mrs Eden Maleta sa Mundo ni Tatang Danilo” Oil on Canvass 48” x 36” (HxW)

Jericho Valjusto Vamenta, XUHS 1993

Education

The Gold Rush