"How can the Philippines turn nickel mines green again?", 3 September 2025

The Philippines is a global leader in nickel mining - crucial if the world is ever to switch to clean energy - but it’s an industry that comes with a heavy environmental cost.

Scientists say extracting minerals poses a grave threat to vast swathes of forests and the Filipinos who depend on them, raising questions about the land’s long-term survival and how to restore all the felled trees.

What is the state of Philippine mining right now?

About 700,000 hectares - or 2.5 per cent - of the Philippines is covered by mining tenements, according to data from the Mines and Geosciences Bureau, the government agency responsible for managing the country’s mineral resources…

The Philippines is the world’s second-largest producer of nickel, which is a key component in the clean energy transition used in the batteries of electric vehicles and wind turbines.

Nickel is mined by open-pit methods that remove nutrient-rich topsoil and vegetation, a process that environmentalists say affects the soil’s fertility and disrupts ecosystems.

In the Philippines, mining firms can operate for a quarter of a century then contracts can be renewed for another 25 years.

Environmentalists fear such a long lifespan can cause irreversible damage, such as habitat destruction, as well as water and soil contamination.

What about restoring all these mined-out areas?

Philippine laws require mining companies to restore closed or depleted mining areas through reforestation and rehabilitation.

The government has identified 21 mined-out areas for rehabilitation under its greening programme, including former mining sites in the provinces of Surigao, Cebu and Palawan.

Companies are responsible for mine rehabilitation throughout the entire mining life cycle, be it improving soil quality, planting native species or maintaining the restored site…

Mining often leads to biodiversity loss, soil degradation, pollution and the destruction of water systems - problems that scientists say cannot be solved by planting trees alone…