By Ric Obdencio | 11:24 AM September 11, 2022
The Bohol Limestone Corporation (BLC) and Philippine Mining Service Corporation (PMSC) showed their hospitality by welcoming the Bohol Tri-Media Association (BTMA) to the mining site in Garcia-Hernandez, Bohol.
BLC resident manager Engr. Winston Eduard Bolo and PMSC manager Engr. Paul Espina led their staff in showing to the media personalities why the limestone was born and how it operates to provide minerals to the growing demand of limestone ore for sintering purposes, not only the country but to other countries.
“We want to showcase our operations and the importance of mining,” Bolo said in his short message.
Espina, on the same vein, showed to media how to make a limestone ore before they may be used for binding in making iron products.
Bolo said that the operations were shut down for over two years due to the pandemic but now they’re open to the visitors.
BLC produces the raw materials by extracting them raw from its approved 640 hectares concession area in this town, while PMSC does the processing of limestone ore by grinding them literally into pieces of different sizes —–0-5mm, 40-80mm, 0-125mm and 10-40mm.
During the visit, extraction of high-grade raw limestone minerals contributes taxes to the government as explained by Jose Rey Mapute while environment protection and management is also vital in engaging in mining as explained by Roselyn Vicere.
Community Development management also plays an important role in this type of mining since the community is part of the entire program of the company as told by Jonah May Agaluna, while safety and health is paramount by Gleena Alaan.
She said that there was zero accident in three million man-hour operations, so far. She hoped that no considerable accident happened because the company cares for its workers and the community.
Engr. Chanar Mae Plaza-Ido briefly explained to BTMA the company’s profile during the short huddle with the media.
The conduct of the feasibility study started sometime in 1974 then the following year (1975) the development of mine was done. The mine development project was finished in December of 1976.
The actual start of the mining operations was in February 1977 for 25 years under then the Consuelo Limestone Corporation (CLC). Since then, the CLC operated the mining up to 1999 after that the mining rights was acquired by what is now the BLC.
In September in the same year (1999), the limestone project was approved by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). In 2000, he signing of MPSA contract with DENR took place.
From the start of the mining in 1976 to 1985, the company extracted a total of 55,670,467 (million) metric tons of limestone (CaC03) from the concession area.
The concession area has an estimated reserve in the total 544,792,519 metric tons of minerals still to be mined.
It would take some 180 years to do mining the reserve based on three (3) million MT of annual production target, the company said. (rvo)