The Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP) is fully carrying out the Towards Sustainable Mining (TSM) program, with all 19 members of the chamber spearheading the initiative.
TSM is a global performance measurement standard instituted by the Mining Association of Canada in 2004 and embraced by the body in 2017, said Business Mirror in its report.
Its assessment would include Safety and Health, Community and Indigenous Peoples Outreach and Social Development, Crisis Management and Communications, Water Management, Tailings Management, Biodiversity Conservation Management and Climate Change.
This program meant that these companies would undergo a self-assessment report on 8 TSM Protocols for their last year’s performance using the Mine Site Sustainability Audit (MSSA) app specifically designed to implement the program in the Philippines.
The mines would supervise their own internal audits and should be able to carry out their self-rating with proof and evidence. 10 of the 19 mines would also submit to independent external verification by proficient Verification Service Providers (VSPs) to authenticate their reports.
Meanwhile, the other nine would be validated by VSP next year. The results of the assessments and reports would then be publicized once completed.
COMP Chairman Michael Toledo said that after the program’s implementation in 2017, the Chamber underwent a 6 year preparation period, tailoring the protocol to accommodate its Philippine counterpart.
Currently, 16 COMP member companies have operational mines in the country, namely, Benguet Corporation, Cagdianao Mining Corporation, Carmen Copper Corporation, Carrascal Nickel Corporation, CTP Construction and Mining Corporation, Dinapigue Mining Corporation, Eramen Minerals Inc., and FCF Minerals Inc.
Joining them are Filminera Resources Corporation, Hinatuan Mining Corporation, Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company, LNL Archipelago Minerals Inc., Platinum Group Metals Corporation, and Taganito Mining Corporation.
