Ben D. Kritz
THE alarm with which the mineral sector has received the news of the appointment of the apoplectically anti-mining Gina Lopez as head of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) was quantified in a report released this week by the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP). The report summarized the potential loss from what would be a worst-case scenario for the industry under the new Duterte government, a virtual halt to any mining activities in the country: a total of about $30 billion over the next five to 10 years in lost investment and foregone revenue.