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As pressure mounts, miners urge $2B allocation to research mercury-free operations

Oct 29, 2017 News

As the wheels turn towards a 2027 deadline for Guyana to stop using mercury altogether in gold extraction operations, miners are urging technical assistance from Government.
“The Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) is calling for Government to step forward with strong technical assistance to small and medium scale miners, to ensure sustainable development principles are applied to the gold and diamond mining sector,” the body said in a statement.
Guyana has signed onto what is known as the Minamata Convention on Mercury which gives this country and a number of others a timeline to ease up and get out altogether from using the dangerous mercury.
However, local miners said that the process to move away from mercury will be a long-term one that will not come cheap and will involve spending millions in alternative equipment.
“The association once again highlights the need for the government to identify improved mercury free gold recovery technologies and techniques which can lead to achievement of the objectives of the Minamata Convention on Mercury,” GGDMA said in its statement.
The association made it clear that as a responsible entity in the mining sector, it fully endorses the objective and purposes of the Convention and fully supports the measures in Article 7 and in Annex “C” of the said Convention.
“The GGDMA recognizes, however, that the Convention specifically requires that “Each Party that has artisanal and small-scale gold mining and processing, subject to this article within its territory shall take steps to reduce, and where feasible eliminate, the use of mercury and mercury compounds in, and the emissions and releases to the environment of mercury from such mining and processing.”
Mercury is said to have long-term effects on the environment, including plants and animals.
“It is clear that the requirement to determine the economic and technical feasibility of eliminating mercury use in gold mining in Guyana depends heavily on strong support from government. The GGDMA re-emphasises that best practices have to be sought based on what is appropriate, adoptable, and most cost effective for the geographical and geological environments in which our small and medium scale miners operate in Guyana.”
The association said it is hoping that Government will put its best mining engineers and mineral processing engineers out in the field with the miners to find solutions.
“The GGDMA is of the view that with clear direction, quality equipment, and adequate funding, the GGMC professionals can determine the feasibility of eliminating mercury from gold mining.
The GGDMA respectfully suggest that the government should approve of the GGMC being allocated G$2.0 billion in 2018 for the acquisition of quality equipment and the conducting of test work for the determination of the feasibility of eliminating the use of mercury in mining and processing in Guyana.”
The association said it looks forward to strong collaboration with the GGMC and the finalization of an acceptable National Action Plan in accordance with Annex “C” of the Convention and the published Mining Policy of Guyana.
Gold mining is key to the country’s economy, with thousands of persons involved in the business. It is also critical as it is the biggest foreign currency earner for Guyana. This would be underscored by record-breaking declarations in recent years.

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