EP Wants EC To Propose, Until End-2011, Complete Ban On Use Of Cyanide Mining

The EP on Wednesday adopted 488 to 48 votes and 57 abstentions a resolution banning cyanide mining and argued that a complete ban "is the only safe way to protect our water resources and ecosystems against cyanide pollution from mining activities".

MEPs urged the development and application of safer - in particular cyanide-free - mining. They also called on the European Commission and EU member states "not to support, either directly or indirectly, any mining projects in the EU that involve cyanide technology until the general ban is applicable, nor to support any such projects in third countries".

The Commission is asked to encourage redevelopment of the areas where cyanide mining is banned, through financial support for alternative green industries, renewable energy and tourism.

The joint resolution also asks the Commission to put forward an amendment to existing legislation on the management of waste from the extractive industries requiring that every operating company should take out insurance to cover compensation for damage and all remedial costs incurred in restoring a site to its original ecological and chemical status in the event of an accident or malfunction.

In retort, the representatives of Rosia Montana Gold Corporation (RMGC), a joint-venture with the Romanian state, which plans to develop a major gold mining project based on cyanide technologies, in Rosia Montana, western Romania, said in a press release Wednesday that the EP resolution has no juridical impact whatsoever and only proves a concerted and harsh attack against Romania and its future development.

They underscored that the legislation in the field needs no improvements for the moment, which, they added, was plainly voiced by European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Cecilia Malmström. According to RMGC officials, Malmström said that, in the light of strict provisions included in the existing EU Directive and the absence of some viable alternatives, a complete ban on the use of cyanide mining technologies for gold extraction does not seem fit for the moment.

RMGC officials harshly criticized the initiators of the resolution, claiming they are not interested in the impact of the measure they proposed to EU communities.

The gold mining project in Rosia Montana, which has been on the table since the 1990s, is highly controversial because it entails cyanide mining. Another issue of concern is the preservation of archeological sites in the area.

Early March this year, Romania's Environment Minister Laszlo Borbely warned Romanian authorities must be very careful about approving a cyanide mining project after the cyanide spill ten year years ago.

On the night of January 30, 2000, a dam holding contaminated waters, owned by Romanian-Australian firm "Aurul" Baia Mare, burst, spilling 100,000 cubic meters of cyanide-contaminated water over farmland and then into the Somes river. The polluted waters eventually reached the Tisza and then the Danube, killing large quantities of fish in Hungary and the former Yugoslavia. Hungary demanded USD100 million as reparations for the damage caused by the accident.

Hungary's ambassador to Bucharest, Oskar Fuzes, said in February this year that Hungary opposes the gold mining project in Rosia Montana in western Romania, but underscored the decision belongs to Romanian authorities. He said that if the Romanian Government decides to give green light to the mining project, Hungary will have "about 300 questions on the matter" targeting common financing to prevent environmental accidents and the protection of archeological sites in the area.

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