* New minister to evaluate if Philippines is safe from
mining
* Miners expect crackdown on environmental grounds
* Only 3 pct of Philippine mineral reserves is being mined
* Philippines is biggest nickel ore supplier to China
(Recasts with comments from mining minister)
By Manolo Serapio Jr and Enrico Dela Cruz
MANILA, July 1 (Reuters) - The Philippines will review all
mines operating in the country, the new mining minister said on
Friday, as the committed environmentalist vowed to determine
whether the industry is hurting the Southeast Asian nation.
Regina Lopez's appointment to head the Department of
Environment and Natural Resources, has sent shockwaves through
the mining sector, which fears a nationwide crackdown.
"I'm not against the mining industry but I'm against
suffering," Lopez told reporters on her first day in office as
part of the administration of Rodrigo Duterte.
"I do want to evaluate if the country is safe from mining,"
she told a briefing where videos were aired showing
environmental harm from mining along with testimonies from
farmers and fishermen opposed to the industry.
The minister said the review would take a month.
Her stance suggests a tough regulatory road ahead for
Philippine miners, whose nickel ore producers are the biggest
suppliers to China.
President Duterte has warned that he could cancel projects
causing environmental harm, though he told business leaders last
week that he was not against mining per se.
The country's mining sector, one of the world's largest in
the 1970s, has since struggled partly due to environmental rules
and policy flip flops, missing much of the mining boom in recent
decades and now facing much lower commodity prices.
Lopez has described as "madness" even to consider open pit
mining - a method used by many miners in the Philippines and
elsewhere - because of the environmental impact.
The minister declined to say on Friday whether she would ban
it, but said the industry "has to shift its method of
operations."
The Philippines has suffered a number of environmental
disasters caused by mining, including a 1996 tailings leak at
Canadian-owned Marcopper Mining Corp's copper mine in Marinduque
that contaminated rivers.
RISK OF POLICIES BACKFIRING?
Ramon Adviento, senior vice president at Global Ferronickel
Holdings Inc FNI.PS , the Philippines' second-biggest nickel
ore miner, said the industry was "shell shocked" by Lopez'
appointment though he didn't think it meant the death of mining.
But miners say hardline policies could backfire particularly
as the Philippines has become the biggest nickel ore supplier to
China after previous top exporter Indonesia banned shipments of
unprocessed minerals in 2014, shipping 34.3 million tonnes last
year.
Mining contributes less than 1 percent to the Philippine
economy. Of 9 million hectares identified by the government as
having high mineral reserves, only 3 percent is being mined.
"Duterte wants hard investments and new projects invest
billions of dollars... and these are done in far-flung areas
which goes with the president's call for rural development,"
said Nelia Halcon from the Chamber of Mines of the Philippines.
The challenge is how to lure back foreign investors.
Mining investment shrank to a three-year low in 2015 below
$1 billion, after President Benigno Aquino, Duterte's
predecessor, banned new mining development permits during his
term and sought to increase the state's revenue share from
mines.
Commodities giant Glencore Plc GLEN.L last year quit the
$5.9 billion gold-copper Tampakan project in the southern
Mindanao island, that has failed to take off after the province
where Tampakan is located banned open-pit mining in 2010.
There are only a handful of foreign investors involved in
mining currently, including Australia's Oceanagold Corp OGC.AX
and Canada's B2Gold BTO.TO .
It's going to take some time to reassure foreign investors,
which have the capital and technology, that "the risk is not too
high," said business consultant Peter Wallace.
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
GRAPHIC - Philippine mining industry http://tmsnrt.rs/297lGaj
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
(Editing by Ed Davies)