LEGAZPI CITY -- Albay Gov. Jose Sarte Salceda yesterday called for a full dressed investigation on the incident of fish kills that hit five coastal villages in Rapu-rapu town allegedly triggered by mine tailings which overflowed from a mining operation in said island town of Albay.

        Salceda said “as the report entered my office, I immediately asked the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to undertake a through investigation on the reported fish kills incidents last Sunday.”

        He also dispatched his environment consultant to undertake a parallel probe and submit a recommendation as to what action should be taken by the provincial government to prevent similar incident in the future.

        Salceda said “facts must be established, as science must rule, but we have to exhaust the full extent of the law to resolved this issue in the best interest of Albay.”

        He also urged the Sangguniang  Panlalawigan to also conduct a full dressed investigation and draw up appropriate legislative actions concerning this environmental concern.

        He called on the people of Albay particularly those marginalized fisherfolks affected by the fishkills to be vigilant.

        Rapu-rapu coastal villagers reported   fishkill incidents in the villages of Pagcolbon, Malobago, Santa Barbara, Carubcob and poblacion.

        Barangay Poblacion is 10 kilometers away from the   Lafayette mine site but villagers there fished out 10 to 20 kilos of dead fishes in the shorelines.

        Barangays Pagcolbon, Malobago, and Binosawan are the sites where Lafayette Mining Corp. an Australian mining firm which operates the Rapu-rapu Polymetallic Mining Project operates.

        The fish kill that hit the controversial mining town of Rapu-Rapu island in Albay province was enough to stink the port area there but as of Monday the local authorities were still collecting samples to determine its cause, according to a town councilor.

        Rapu-Rapu town Councilor Wilson Guianan, chairman of the council’s committee on agriculture and fisheries, said the fish kill could have started in the night of Oct. 26 and continued the following day.

        But Bishop Bastes of the Diocese of Sorsogon, an advocate against mining activities in Rapu-Rapu island, said the fish kill was caused by another mine-spill triggered by continuous rain the past two days.

        Bastes said a certain Manuel “Bong” Rangasa of the office of Albay Governor Joey Salceda has sent him text message Sunday informing him of the mine-spill incident.

        Rapu-Rapu island town has been a point of conflict between several clergies and environmental groups in the one hand, and the Australian-owned Lafayette Mining Ltd. and pro-mining interests in the other hand, since the mine-spill incident in Oct. 31, 2005.

        The Lafayette mining in Rapu-Rapu island town is one of the large-scale mining ventures approved under the Mining Act of 1995.

        The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) suspended the operation of the Lafayette immediately until safety requirements complied and it was allowed to fully operate again last February.

        Reynulfo Juan, acting regional executive director of the DENR, said he has already sent a team to investigate on the reported fish kill.

        Juan said the Lafayette has reported to them that no incident happened at the mining operation and that the mine-tailing pond has enough clearance and no incident of mine-spill happened lately.

        The DENR director said they still have to collect samples for laboratory examination to determine the cause of the fish kill in Rapu-Rapu.

        Bastes said the report of fish kill that reached him described that in five minutes one can gather more than one kilo of fish.

        “You see, we are vindicated in our recommendation to stop the operation of the Lafayette. Island town is denuded that it is very destructive to conduct mining activities there. I want the secretary of the DENR to come to Rapu-Rapu to be convinced,” the bishop declared.

        Fr. Andy Baliwas, parish priest of Sta. Florentina in the island town of Rapu-Rapu told The Manila Times that fish kills were reported to his parish by the villagers.

        When asked if what was the caused of fish kill, Fr. Baliwas said that he had no idea yet if what triggered the massive fish kills because they need scientific study and findings. “This poblacion is more or less 10-kilometer away from Lafayette mining site. Maraming isda ang namatay, kagabi bumuhos ang malakas na ulan. Estimate ng manga tao dito lang sa poblacion ng Rapu-Rapu mga 15 to 20 kilos ng isda dito lang sa pier.” Fr. Baliwas said. The villagers of Rapu-Rapu reported that fish kill was also reported in Pagcolbon village nearby the mining site.

        This was the third time that fish kill occurred in Rapu-Rapu Albay since the operation of multi-million gold mining activity operated by Lafayette Philippines, Inc. In 2005, two consecutive waste tailing spills occurred in Rapu-Rapu following heavy rains. The waste tailings of LPI overflowed on October 11 and 31 which affected the waters of Rapu-Rapu town in Albay and Prieto Diaz in Sorsogon province.

        The mining operation expects to produce gold, copper, silver, zinc with an estimated gains placed at $350 million over the next three years.

        Fishkills incident  took place two years ago after the mining firms cyanide dump and mine tailing dump over flowed  when heavy rains struck the island town in July and Oct. 2005.

        For this reason  the firm was ordered closed temporarily but was reopened last year after the mining firm had instituted corrective measures in its mining operation with 36 conditionalities.