The mining firm operating the Semirara coal mine in Antique on Saturday warned of possible brownouts and increased power charges should its operations remain suspended.

Semirara Mining Corporation's (SMC) operation on Semirara Island has been suspended as search and retrieval operations for the remaining five missing miners resumed Saturday.

Mariz Umali-Tima's report on “Balitanghali” said the SMC expressed fears that suspension of operations at its Panian Pit – whose west wall collapsed on Wednesday, leaving seven miners dead and five others missing – would result in power outages and a possible hike in power rates.

Umali-Tima quoted SMC’s statement saying the reserved coal in the country supply can last from two to three months only, and when depleted, will prompt the country to import coal.

In a statement on Thursday, the SMC said it has been coordinating with authorities and has stopped operations while it is in the process of determining the cause of Wednesday's tragedy.

Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla had said SMC operations would only resume after consultations with the Department of Energy (DOE).

He also noted that while the accident in the company’s mine is unprecedented, and that a landslide caused the mine wall to collapse, it will still have to be determined if SMC was indeed negligent about workplace safety standards.

Another condition is that the SMC should submit a comprehensive safety plan to prevent future similar incidents from happening.

Search and retrieval operations for the missing men were halted on Friday due to the unstable ground in the mine area, but resumed on Saturday.

Also the report said, the open-pit coal mine has an estimated area of 300 to 400 hectares, and even if its west wall was the only part affected, it is still a big area to cover for the search.

Around seven K-9 units are expected to help in the search efforts, the report said, adding that a pump was also brought in to siphon water from the affected area, to prevent the rise of water level that could hamper the search and retrieval efforts.

Still missing are Leovigildo Porras, 50; Jan Riel Planca, 28; Randy Tamparong, 30; Richard Padernilla, 26; and Junjie Gomez, 19.

‘NO SUCH THING AS RESPONSIBLE MINING’

Meanwhile, a group is calling the local governments in Negros to stop large and medium mining operations in the Island following the Semirara incident.

In a statement sent to The News Today, Greg Ratin, secretary-general of group Defend Patrimony-Negros Occidental, said the mining disaster in Antique must be an eye-opener to the reality that “there is no such thing as responsible and environment-friendly mining operations.”  

He noted that the mine just passed the safety inspection conducted by the DOE last Jan. 31, 2013.

He said the government must also review the Mining Act of 1995 to ensure that it benefits not only the mining firms but the public and is protective of our country’s resources and environment as well.

He also stressed how firms fail to take full rehabilitation of the mined areas and claimed that the companies also “have never paid nor compensate damages they have created to the lives and livelihood of the thousands of people in several communities affected by their operations and other interventions.”

He also noted the collapse of Tailing Pond numbers 2 and 3 of Macicalum Mining Corp. and the failure of the Decant Tower of Philex Mining’s Tailing Pond No. 2 which created disasters to the residents of Sipalay and neighboring communities including health and environmental hazards.

He called on the local government units of Negros to join hands to stop the large and medium mining operations of Philex Mining, Selinga “Colet” Mining, MMC, and others.*with GMA News