Mineral Resources of the Philippines
Posted on Friday, 9 October 2015
Mineral
Resources of the Philippines
by Apolinario Villalobos
During the pre-colonial days of the
Philippines, only gold was mined by the natives. The precious metal was among
the reasons why the archipelago was coveted by colonizers. Different mineral deposits
are practically distributed among the islands and islets that compose the
archipelago.
Gold can be found in the Mountain Province,
Ilocos Norte, Abra, Camarines Norte,
Camarines Sur, and Mindanao; chromite in Zambales, Batangas, Mindoro, Masbate, Palawan,
Surigao, Agusan, Davao, Misamis Oriental, Zamboanga del Sur, and Mountain
Province; copper in Ilocos Norte, Tarlac, Zambales, Batangas, Catanduanes,
Antique, Capiz, Negros Occidental, Cebu and Tawi-tawi; iron in Ilocos Norte,
Mountain Province, Cagayan, Bulacan, Bataan, Camarines Norte, Marinduque,
Surigao,Davao and Palawan; natural asphalt in Leyte. Nonoc island is known for
its nickel.
Manganese can be found in Ilocos Norte, Pangasinan, Tarlac, Camarines
Sur, Masbate, Coron Island in the Calamian group, Siquijor, Bohol, Bukidnon,
and Leyte; coal in Polilio island, Laguna, Quezon, Mindoro, Capiz, Negros,
Cebu, Samar, Davao, Cotabato, and Zamboanga del Sur; oil in Cebu, Cotabato, and
Quezon; gypsum in Batangas; sulfur in
Camiguin Island; pyrite in Camarines Sur, Palawan and Surigao; soda
feldspar in Cebu, Biiran Island, and Sarangani; phosphate in Pangasinan,
Camarines Sur, Albay, Catanduanes, Palawan, Iloilo, Samar and Bohol; quartz
sand in Ilocos Norte; magnesite in Davao; granulite and quicksilver in Palawan.
Today, the coastline of Ilocos Norte is gashed with non-stop mining of quartz
sand by shiploads.
Romblon is known for its world-class marble
which can also be mined in the Mountain Province, Guimaras Island, and Bulacan;
guano deposit abounds in Pangasinan, Zambales, Camarines Sur, Capiz, Iloilo and
Palawan; silica sand can be found in Lubang Island near Palawan, Dinagat island
near Surigao, and in Palawan; limestone
abounds in Cagayan, Isabela, Bulacan, Quezon, Samar, Panay island, Cotabato
provinces, Cebu, and Palawan.
It is no wonder that “modern colonizers”
salivate at the prospect of economically enslaving the Philippines, on account
of her abundant mineral deposits which could be considered as “collaterals” for
never-ending renewal of debts. This is also the reason why, the Americans
immediately demanded the inclusion of the “Parity Rights” in the Philippine
Constitution before total self-governance was finally granted.
The West Philippine Sea being disputed with
China and other neighboring SEAsian countries, and the Ligwasan Marsh in
Cotabato are reputed to be rich in natural gas and deuterium. With the
predicted exhaustion of oil deposit in the Middle East, industrialized
countries are looking for alternative sources of fuel, and the Philippines is
among them.
How can the Filipino, then, not fight for
his rights, and protect what are his, such as those that have been mentioned?
Discussion