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PaganWatch pushes passage of mining bill
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Posted on Feb 25 2006
PaganWatch has urged lawmakers to immediately pass a bill that would create a Pagan mining task force and require all investors to undergo a bid before they could extract pozzolan from the northern island.
House 15-56 is pending in the House Committee on Judiciary and Governmental Operations, which is chaired by bill sponsor and PaganWatch member Rep. Cinta Kaipat.
According to PaganWatch member Peter J. Perez, the bill would allow the CNMI people the opportunity to participate in deciding how to manage the reported 200 million metric tons of pozzolan available in Pagan.
“The bill before you can change the lives of each and every person living in the Commonwealth. It seeks to give back to the people what has been denied them by an indifferent board of directors at the Marianas Public Lands Authority—the opportunity to participate in the determination of the future of Pagan, the Northern Marianas’ fourth largest island,” Perez said.
He noted that H.B. 15-56 was drafted through the collected efforts of indigenous Chamorros and Carolinians who live in the CNMI and abroad. Some of the bill’s drafters are lawmakers and others are ordinary citizens.
“All these people realized that Pagan is special, and that the mining opportunity brings with it a grave responsibility to ensure that any mining is done carefully and that the environment and people of Pagan are protected, so that the economic benefits to the CNMI justify the risk,” he said.
According to Perez, the proposed legislation does not ask for special favors or benefits for a particular group.
He said the bill was a common-sense proposition that would simply let existing government agencies and community representatives have the time to address the mining opportunity properly.
The measure would also assist the successful bidder in meeting regulatory and permitting requirements; hence, creating a win-win situation for both the community and the investor.
