Even if the leakage recorded in the Philex mine in Benguet province is ten times more than that of the 1996 Marcopper mine spill, Philex Mining Corp. is claiming that the two leakage issues are not comparable to each other, even lambasting earlier report that connected the two.

In a phone interview with Sr. Vice President Mike Toledo of Philex, he said that the Philex mine spill issue is not comparable to the Marcopper mine spill that happened more than a decade ago. “These two issues are different.”

“Admittedly, [in Philex mine] there’s more than what were discharged in Marcopper but the news was very glaring. First of all, dam in Padcal, didn’t collapse, the dam is intact, there was just a breach or a hole in the system and it has already been patched,” Toledo said. “It didn’t collapse unlike what happened in Marcopper.”

Toledo also said that another reason why the Philex mine issue in Benguet is different from that of the Marcopper mine is that they didn’t turn their backs away from the issue and that they admitted responsibility.

He added that they are “doing the best we can do to clean the Balog Creek,” which was the most affected area during the recent leakages.

Another point that Toledo raised was that Mines and Geosciences Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources had already made clear that the sediments that were released from the Padcal mine were non-toxic, biodegradable and harmless, unlike in Marcopper, where several livelihoods in the area were affected.

“In fact, nobody has complained yet to the alleged cause of the sediments,” he added. “And yes, there were sediments released and we will be responsible for this.”

“We will clean that up no matter how long it will take,” he said.

Toledo added that the fact that they didn’t run away from their responsibility draws a thick line between the Philex mine spill and Marcopper spill.