EPA to conduct its own study for OMAI planned dumping of mining pit water into Essequibo River

Oct 09, 2024 News

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“The EPA on Tuesday said that it will conduct its own study for OMAI planned dumping of mining pit water into Essequibo River”

 

 

Kaieteur News – In response to an article by Kaieteur News highlighting that Canadian mining company, Omai Gold Mines Corporation intends to discharge water containing cyanide and mercury at levels below the detection limit from the old mining pits into the Essequibo River, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on Tuesday that it will be conducting its own water quality testing to ensure compliance with environmental standards.

Omai through its wholly owned subsidiary Avalon Gold Exploration Inc., holds a 100% interest in the Omai Prospecting License, covering some 4,590 acres or 18.575 square kilometres including the past producing Omai gold mine. Omai’s gold project encompasses two gold deposits: the shear-hosted Wenot Deposit and the adjacent intrusive-hosted Gilt Creek Deposit.

Avalon submitted an application for environmental authorisation to conduct gold mining and processing operations in Region Seven, at the confluence of the Essequibo and Seballi Rivers, Omai, Potaro Mining District 2. The project aims to sustainably extract and process gold from the area.

On Monday, it was reported that the future re-opening of Omai operations in Guyana would require dewatering of the existing open pits (Wenot and Fennel). This publication had reported that according to the project summary, cyanide and mercury levels were below detection limits. “All cyanide data was reported below the method detection limit of 0.002 mg/L (accepted objective is 0.005 mg/L) and all mercury data was reported below the method detection limit of 0.2 ug/L (accepted objective is 0.2 ug/L),” it was stated.

In the statement, the agency noted that no Environmental Authorisation has been granted for any activities related to the project as proposed. “Although Omai has conducted its own water quality testing, which shows that cyanide and mercury levels are within acceptable international standards, the EPA will conduct its own independent testing to verify the results and ensure compliance with environmental protection standards,” it was stated.

To this end, EPA said that the proposed dewatering (removal of water) of the Wenot Pit does not contain cyanide or mercury.  “Initial water quality tests conducted by Omai indicate no detectable levels of these substances in the water intended for discharge,” the agency added.

Kaieteur News reported that as part of the legal requirements outlined in the Environmental Protection Act, an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is necessary due to the potential significant environmental effects of the proposed mining activity.

The EPA said it will only decide on the approval or rejection of the project after the EIA is completed. As such, the public is invited to participate in the process by submitting questions and concerns they would like to see addressed in the EIA. These submissions must be made in writing to the EPA within 28 days of the notice issued on September 17, 2024.

Moreover, the project summary stated that characterisation of both the pit water chemistry and the receiving water body (Essequibo River) chemistry is essential to understanding any potential impacts.

Water sampling took place between November 14 and 16, 2023, to characterise the chemistry and water quality of the Wenot and Fennell pit water, and the adjacent Essequibo River, the document noted. Within those three-days, Omai said it collected a total of 86 water samples from the Wenot and Fennell pits and 26 water samples from the Essequibo River. The samples were analysed within the recommended timeframes for metals, anions, and cyanide.

Results from the sample of the Essequibo River showed that the majority of the samples were within established surface water quality objectives, except for three sites with minor copper exceedances, the company said.

According to Omai, the results were compared to international water quality standards such as the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) and Ontario’s Provincial Water Quality Objectives (PWQO) and showed no exceedances for key contaminants like arsenic, cadmium, cyanide, copper, lead, mercury, nitrate, and sulphate.

“Review of all quality control (QC) data demonstrated overall good reproducibility and excellent accuracy,” the company said. Omai explained that while the CCME and PWQO guideline values have no regulatory standing in Guyana, the practices were used for comparative purposes as current best industry practice concentrations.

Overall, the company findings are that all critical parameters were well within safe limits for the protection of aquatic life. The study analyzed the water chemistry in both Omai pits (Fennell and Wenot) and the receiving Essequibo River. The results indicated that the water from the pits did not exceed any international water quality standards for the protection of aquatic life.

In fact, the company said that the water quality in the pits was found to be better than that of the Essequibo River in several parameters. As a result, Omai said that the discharge of water from the Wenot Pit into the river is expected to improve the Essequibo River water quality in the discharge area and downstream.

(EPA to conduct its own study for OMAI planned dumping of mining pit water into Essequibo River)

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• Avalon Gold Exploration Inc, cyanide, Environmental Impact Assessment, Essequibo river, Guyana, Mercury, Omai Gold Mines, Omai Prospecting License, Potaro Mining District 2, The EPA, water

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