Palawan has been named as one of the Worlds Best Island.

Palawan is one of the most

eminent spots in the Philippine history that is rich in minerals such as copper, mercury and

nickel. Its richness in biodiversity is beyond comparison among tourist destinations in the world.

It boasts of a mantel of rainforests, grandiose mountains, prehistoric caves, pristine dive sites

and beaches. Its bountiful resources, abundant wildlife and extraordinary natural beauty are

known to many ethnic communities and many settlers wanted to live in its unpolluted

surroundings.However, the documentary is not about a travel story. Instead, this aims to show

the other side of Palawan that tourists would not want to see, and that would not be pleasing for

the mountain climbers. These was said to be the result of the Rio Tuba mining in Palawan,

which did not only damage the natural resources, but also the farmers livelihood.

Mining is one of the oldest industries in the Philippines. It is often a significant contributor

to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and poverty mitigation in many developing countries. This

has also provided a lot of job opportunities for some people who relied on it. On the other hand,

for someone whose livelihood solely depends on agriculture, mining is considered a

catastrophe. While it has provided benefits for miners and mining company owners, the degree

of its damage to the earth, the farmers livelihood and to the peoples general well-being has

become extremely alarming. The mining in Palawan by the Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation

is said to have destroyed Palawans virgin forests and has caused siltation of its water

resources, which affected a lot of Palaweos.

Narra, Palawan is considered as the rice granary of Palawan. Unfortunately, this has

caught the eye of the mining companies in which operations resulted to its ravaged soil and

rivers. The documentary have successfully shown the two sides of the story, the side of the

farmer whose livelihood has been damaged severely by the RNTC mining and the side of a

miner who has benefited a lot from the mining. Aling Yolanda, one of the farmers in the

documentary have shared the unceasing downturn of their harvested rice grains which was

mainly caused by the RNTC mining. It can be observed that Yolanda weeps in desperation by
just looking at the rice grains that have turned red and poisonous for people, because of the

aluminum and iron oxides coming from the RNTC. In contrast to the farmers condition, Miguel

Ventura, one of the RNTC miners favors the companys mining notwithstanding his knowledge

about its risks and negative impact to the environment for the reason that it became his source

of compensation that enables him to provide a better life for his family.

In line with the story, it can be concluded that the Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation

did not consider their corporate social responsibility in conducting its business operations. The

corporation prefers its self-interest despite knowing the fact that its operation was continuously

damaging the environment within which they are based. Its only concern was profit, and the

temporary benefits they can get from mining. Mining might really offer a lot of opportunities and

services to the community, however, its risks and costs are unevenly distributed for it results to

negative effects that have major impact to the environment and the people of the community

where the corporation operates.

Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation has planting commitments such as rehabilitation of

totally mined-out areas and reforestation of denuded non mineralized areas. Having such vows,

Do RNTC really stimulates the environment they worked on after the production? Do RNTC in

fact concern to the community they are dealing with as can be inferred with their commitments?

And lastly, Do RNTC actually has a corporate social responsibility? The aforementioned

questions will be answered by looking to the stories brought by Krusada and of course

understanding what Corporate Social Responsibility is.

Every business like RNTC should make use of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

not just to beautify its image to the public but to carry out the real rationale of CSR. Employing

such CSR is extremely significant for Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation because the nature of

its business involves certain concerns to the environment and the people that surround it. The

RNTC provides wealth to its employees and to the company as a whole however, giving such

benefits would have to forgo the richness of the environment. As being mentioned, the
production of the company brings social problems to the community such as deterioration of the

plants and crops. Looking to the video clip brought by Krusada, Rio Tuba Nickel Mining

Corporation destroyed a certain area in Palawan which made a shock to the lives of many

farmers. In addition, RNTC causes various pollutions to the area they are working. In fact, they

violated a condition with regards to their permit to execute their business. The residues of the

chemicals they use in production should be placed in a particular area where it has a quantity

limit. Notwithstanding the limitations set thereby, the company still throws the remains in other

areas of Palawan which makes the waterway, the water source of the residents, being polluted

and poisonous.

Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation had caused several social problems to Palawan.

Despite of such wrong doing, the company may still regain its image to the public by providing

management to revive at least the place they have worked on as well as giving programs like

planting trees, giving free fertilizers and funds for farmers and other benefits relating to the

improvement of environment not just to Palawan but to all other areas in the Philippines.

The topic of the documentary is very significant to everyone for it could make people,

specifically the miners, to realize what is really at stake, if mining against farming would be

argued about. The topic deeply desires to prove that in this argument, the earth is the one

irreversibly damage for the temporary wealth and livelihood that mining could provide.

Additionally, the topic has an importance not just to the environment but also to peoples

behavior in carrying out their respective responsibility. The documentary emphasizes not only

the history of Rio Tuba Nickel Mining Corporation but also its contribution to the future as RNTC

executes their duty to the environment and continues to bring wealth to the community.