Further Observations and Comments on the Cyanide Process to Produce Gold

The Berlin-Declaration on Gold Mining

Further Observations and Comments on the Cyanide Process to Produce Gold

Prof. Dr. F. Korte, Munich, Germany
Prof. Dr. F. Coulston, Alamogordo, New Mexico, USA

In various Articles and Comments in this journal (EES) discussions were presented regarding accidental breaks in the ponds containing waste cyanide. These leaks caused even some deaths in humans and produced havoc in the surrounding ecological systems, including plants and animals.

The two authors of this and past articles would like to bring you up to date on the Gold problem.

Recently, in Berlin (October 27, 2000) a group of scientists, which included Prof. Dr. Paul Müller, Prof. Dr. Friedhelm Korte, and Petra Sauerland, produced what is known as the "Berlin-Declaration". These scientists produced a statement that now becomes the major thrust against gold processing using cyanide.

On the initiative of FIAN (International Peoples Right Organization) a meeting was held on the activities of the German Development Society in Gold mining, using cyanide process in Ghana, Peru and New-Guinea.

Under the chairmanship of Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Dr. h.c.mult. Paul Müller (University Saarbrücken) and the presence of Gila Altman (State Secretary Ministry of Environment, Germany) and scientific representatives Prof. (em) Dr. Friedhelm Korte (Technical University, Munich), Prof. Dr. Ismail Duman (Technical University Istanbul), Dr. Thomas Rude (University Munich) and Petra Sauerland (Chairman Peoples-Right-Organization FIAN-D) the Berlin Declaration on Gold Mining using the cyanide process was unanimously passed.

Berlin-Declaration on Gold Mining Using Cyanide Process:

1. Critical scientific analysis (especially, eco-chemistry, bio-geographical, hydrological and geochemical ecosystems) emphatically prove that the cyanide process in Gold mining cannot be accepted because of its irreversible damage to the ecosystems. The necessary safe technologies (like detoxification, neutralization, reduction in the availability to the ecosystems among other heavy metals) are only in a limited way available. They cannot guarantee safe Gold mining. Considering economics, water conservation, chemical and protection of nature, Gold mining using cyanide in the open field under the German and EU law is not authorized.

2. Ecosystems analysis at the site of operations prove that in tropical and subtropical zones there is an occurrence of periodic crisis. The technologies to reduce the risk are not manageable and cannot be controlled. Bursting of dams, leakages, transport accidents (for example: Summitville, Colorado/USA 1993; Harmony Mine, South Africa 1994; Manila, Philippines 1995; Omai, Guayana 1995; Homestake Mine South Dakota, USA 1996; Gold Quarry Mine Nevada territory of Western Shoshone, USA 1997; Kumtor, Kirgistan 1998; Baia Mare, Romania 2000) and other smaller accidents indicate worldwide that the concerned firms do not act carefully.
   

3. The economic analysis indicates that the activities of the main Gold producers (for example: Anglo Gold, South Africa; Gold Fields, South Africa; Rio Tinto, UK/AUstralia; Newmont, USA; Barrik, Canada; Placer Dome; Canada; BHP, Australia; Normandy, Australia) are concentrated in poor countries and regions with low production costs, insufficient legal standards and controls

4. Analysis of the social effects on the people and the humanitarian situation prove that there is no positive effects by Gold mining using cyanide process. Short term gains (more jobs) always follows a permanent fall from the previous standards.

5. This negative balance proves that cyanide Gold mining permanently contradicts the 1992 decalartion of Rio. It destroys, in long term, the basic necessities of life and threaten adequate nourishment. The public money sanctioned by the governments for the promotion of Gold mining projects are to be stopped and, where necessary, the affected people should receive compensation.

On February 17, 2000 there appeared an article entitled, "Is the risk of a cyanide discharge from goldmines in Sweden a real threat?" written by Adriaan Muller. For the purposes of this commentary I will quote some of the statements presented in the article. To read the entire article I refer you to the author.

"During the last few weeks a number of reports from the Romanian goldmine at Baia Mara have been circulating in the European press, radio and television. Pictures of massive destruction of fish and other animal life in the river Danube and its subsidiaries have shocked the whole world. Not to mention those who have been directly affected by an enormous discharge of tens of thousands of cubic meters of sediment, with high concentrations of heavy metals and cyanide from a tailing lagoon. Nobody knows how long it will take, if ever, before nature retains its balance." "The EU commissioner for the environment Margot Wallstrom has visited the scene of the disaster. Wallstrom has granted EU assistance to the countries which have been affected and also to send a task force to the area immediately."

The article talks mostly about what is going on in Sweden. "Swedish authorities and mining companies regard Sweden as the leading European mining country. Sweden produces the largest tonnage of iron ore, lead, silver and gold in the EU and is the second largest producer of copper and zinc."

"Thus the number of tailing lagoons in Sweden is high. There is an ongoing research program studying the environmental risk to groundwater, streams, lakes and other drinking water suplies."

"At the moment there are 17 international mining companies who have exploration rights."

"In 1992 the Sewedish parliament decided upon changes in its mineral law, this resulted in the number of claim certificates and exploration permits rocketing. Since 1992, no less than 1600 exploration permits have been granted."

"Around 1.5 million hectares (15.000 km2) are covered with exploration permits today and that means a greater proportion of the country than ever before. An additional area of about 1.7 million partly averlapping hectares, mostly in northern Sweden, has been granted for diamond exploration."

"The total number of new mines in southern Sweden is unknown, but several of them are goldmines in which, most probably, the cyanide process for extraction will be used. Almost all fresh water leaving the Swedish mainland in rivers and streams runs into the Baltic Sea. Any accidental discharge from a tailing lagoon will immediately result in severe environmental repercussions for the Baltic Sea. The long-term effects of an accident, similar to the three accidents in Romania and Spain, to the Baltic and ist sencitive ecology cannot be forseen."

"Accidents of this nature have already taken place in Sweden. A large discharge of heavy metal polluted sediment at the Lulsvall mine in northern Sweden happened in October 1996."

"For the population of south Sweden this is of great concern. The question is if this should also be of great concern to other citizens of the EU and citizens of the Baltic States? What should we do about it before it is too late?"

Author: Adriaan Muller (ARM-Action for a Rightful Mineral Law) 36292 Tingaryd, Sweden Tel.: +46 477 120 74 € Fax: +46 477 453 073 € e-mail: euronatur@telia.com

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

These new disclosures concerning Sweden add to the total understanding of the damage that can be done to the ecological system as well as to the animals and humans that live in these areas. The recent catastrophe in Romania is now well known around the world. This should not be repeated again elsewhere in the world. That cyanide ponds exist even in Sweden maybe without the permits from the government is indeed a very serious problem. Professor Korte and Professor Coulston would like to keep the readers of EES informed not only now, what is current, up-to-date information, but they will try to keep the readers continiously informed about this problem in the future. The Berlin-Declaration speaks for itself and warns us of the danger of using cyanide in processing gold.

The situation, that the open air Cyanide Leaching Gold Recovery Process (CLGRP) which is used and developed since the beginning of 1900 should not be acceptable today, is only understandable if one realises the rapid industrial development since 1900. This fast process has lead to unexpected and unacceptable health consequences for humans and the newly discovered environment.

Environmental health problems are only considered and discussed since the early 70s in a few nations. In the 80s international agencies like the OECD, UNEP, WHO, IPCS etc. became aware of the international dimensions of environmental problems. The most important event in this respect was the Rio Summit in 1992 with the Agenda 21. This agenda required for the first time environmental protection measures on chemicals and processes to be developed and implemented by governments at international level. In the following time additional regulations have been developed (e.g. Maastrich Treaty of the EU, The Rotterdam Convention, UNEP, POP Convention). The principle of sustainibility is internationally accepted to be the focus point for introductions of new industrial processes and also for the reconsiderations of already existing ones. Up to now all scientific publications and national or international meetings have clearly shown that the open air Cyanide Leaching Gold Recovery Process can not fullfill the requirements of a sustainable process and is therefore today not acceptable. The Berlin-Declaration of October 27, 2000 supports this statement strongly.

The great chemical and gold mining industry producing gold today should be able to prevent the constantly ore mining accidents even when realising that a main problem of the process is the fact that more than 99,99xx % of the treated ore (or soil) is structurally changed by the grinding and extraction process which changed the bioavailibility of their newly formed unknown constituents. Only a few promille of unchainged gold are recovered and being of commercial value.

The Berlin Declaration speaks for itself and warns us of the danger of using cyanide in processing gold. In previous "comments", Prof. Dr. Korte and Prof. Dr. Coulston have suggested simple remedies for controlling spills from the cyanide ponds. We hope that the major mining companies will find a way to improve their methods of production!.

Further Literature:

Korte, F. and Coulston, F. (1994). Some considerations of the impact of energy and chemicals on the environment. Regul. Toxicol. Pharmacol. 19, 219-227

Korte, F. and Coulston, F. (1998). Some considerations of the impact of ecological principles in practice with emphasis on gold mining and cyanide. Ecotoxicol. Environ. Saf. 41, 119-129, esp. 125

Korte, F. (1999). Ökologisch-chemische Betrachtungen zu Goldgewinnungs-verfahren. GIT Labor-Fachzeitschrift 43, 1082-1083

World Wide Web, www.korte-goldmining.de
World Wide Web, www.fian.de

Fears of Cyanide Poisoning Grips Village

Feb 1, 07 4:45pm - Malaysia Kini by Bede Hong

THEY live next to a gold mine. While many would rejoice at such a prospect, the villagers of Bukit Koman in Raub feel that it is more of a curse than a boon.

Why?

Because a mining company has set up shop in the tiny hamlet and proposes to use cyanide for the gold extraction process.

-Approved by state gov’t
-Water source vulnerable
-Watch 7-min video clip

Raub villagers protest potential cyanide use

Jan 24, 07 3:56pm - Malaysia Kini by Soon Li Tsin

Some 3,000 residents of Kampung Baru Bukit Koman in Raub, Pahang, are questioning a state agency’s decision to allow the use of cyanide in a gold-mining operation in Bukit Koman.

-Residents not consulted
-‘Release detailed EIA report’

Klau Dam Won’t Cause Floods

Thursday April 19, 2007 - The Star By ROSLINA MOHAMAD

KUANTAN: Following public fears after the floods in Johor, Pahang has assured that a dam it is building in Klau, near Raub, will not overflow and cause floods.

Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob said the Klau dam was different from the Semberong dam in Johor, which is said to have caused major flooding in the state recently.

“The Semberong dam is meant to prevent flooding while Klau dam is for water supply purposes.

“The Klau dam will collect water upstream and release it during the dry season,” he said when replying to a written question by Dr Ng Keong Chye (BN – Ketari) at the state assembly here yesterday.

Adnan added that the areas affected in the building of the dam were Felda Lembah Klau, Lakum forest reserve, Sungai Temir orang asli reserve, Ladang Klau 2, 3 and 4 and the Klau Youth land scheme.

The RM3.8bil dam is part of a raw water transfer project between Pahang and Selangor to supply water to Klang Valley consumers.

To a supplementary question by Datuk Redzwan Harun (BN – Kerdau), the mentri besar said the state legal adviser had been instructed to scrutinise all agreements so as to protect the interests of Pahang and its people.

The House was also told that supervisory and enforcement measures on deviant teachings involving religions other than Islam would come under the jurisdiction of the state security committee.

State Islamic Dakwah and Special Functions Committee chairman Datuk Ahmad Munawar Abdul Jalil informed the assembly about the matter when replying to a supplementary question by Datuk Ti Lian Ker (BN – Teruntum).

Ahmad Munawar had earlier replied to a written question by Dr Abdu Rahman Ibrahim (BN – Jengka) and a supplementary question by Md Rusli Ismail (BN – Tioman) on deviant teachings among Muslims.

Met during tea break, Ti alleged that deviant teachings of non-Islamic religions were quite rampant.

If left unchecked, the issue might jeopardise harmony among the people.

He said it was not enough for the state security committee to monitor and make enforcement on the matter since it did not meet often.

Pahang should be glad to pass the water issue over to Perak

Tuesday March 13, 2007 - The Star by YOPE KEY-DARE, Kuantan

PAHANG should be thankful and relieved if there are other states wishing to take its proposed role as the provider of water under the RM3bil Pahang-Selangor Inter-State Raw Water Transfer (ISRWT) project.

If press reports quoting Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Tajol Rosli Ghazali as saying that Perak is willing to channel 800 million litre per day of water from its Sungai Bernam to Selangor are true, then Pahang should be glad to pass the baton to the silver state.

Tajol Rosli’s proposal came with a condition that the water would be first treated at a plant to be built in Perak, before the fully treated water is transferred to Selangor.

Pahang is said to be the preferred choice for the ISRWT project because of its large tracts of water catchment areas covering almost half of the 3.569 million hectares of the state’s land.

Under the ISRWT project, among others, there is a requirement to build two dams and a 45km underground tunnel.

These two elements of the ISRWT alone could cause major damage to the environment, thus inviting strong opposition from various non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

The two sites where the dams are supposed to be built are in Kelau, Raub, involving an area of about 4,090 hectares; and another in Telemong, Bentong, involving about 1,532 hectares.

However, the Pahang state government under Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob, who feared that the two dams would cause great environmental impact, decided to build only one. Thus the one at Telemong was shelved.

What about the proposed 45km tunnel that not only costs 65% of the entire mega project but is also the main concern of environmental damage?

On the Kelau dam itself, sacrifice has to be made by the people of Pahang including the orang asli who will be moved out to a new settlement.

Furthermore, the water that comes from the catchments will be transferred to Selangor from where it will be treated and supplied to consumers.

This brings little benefit to Pahang because untreated water does not command as high a price as treated water.

Pahang has asked for 15 sen per cubic metre. Selangor, on the other hand, requested a mere 2 sen per cubic metre.

With all the sacrifices Pahang has to make, would it be really worth its while to have this project in the first place?

If not, then Perak should be most welcome to take over from Pahang as the provider of water under this inter-state project.

Move to revive golden era of Raub

Saturday March 3, 2007 - The Star By ROYCE CHEAH

RAUB: A new technology which promises a yield of up to six times more than traditional methods is set to revive the golden era of Raub.

The residue – or tailings – left behind by earlier miners who used the conventional method to tap gold, will be replaced by a state-of-the-art technology from South Africa where the richest gold fields are found.

A company here will build a RM60mil gold processing plant which can potentially produce an annual yield of about 708.7kg of gold, worth about RM53.2mil at current prices.

“The advantage of the new technology is that it can recover up to 85% of gold from the tailings, compared with 15% using traditional gravity methods,” said Peninsular Gold Limited chairman Datuk Seri Andrew Kam.

Mining technology: Adnan (centre) and Raub MP Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen examining core samples from diamond drilling after the ground-breaking ceremony in Raub yesterday, as Peninsular Gold non-executive director Dr Yves Cheze (left) looks on.

The plant will be sited on a mine which has been in use since 1890.

“Raub is synonymous with gold mining in Malaysia and has a history dating back some 200 years.

“The tailings are present in an area of approximately 202.34ha in Raub.

“The plant should be ready in a year's time,” Kam told reporters after the ground-breaking ceremony by Pahang Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaacob at Bukit Koman here yesterday.

Peninsular Gold Limited will build the plant through its wholly-owned subsidiary Raub Australian Gold Mining Sdn Bhd.

Before the event, about 100 placard-carrying villagers gathered at a road leading to the mine, protesting against the plant, which would be using cyanide in the gold processing.

Adnan later met several representatives of the villagers at the Raub Rest House and received a memorandum which called for safe health and environmental measures.

The mentri besar said the villagers had made four requests, which he found reasonable.

The villagers asked for independent expert opinion and data on the project; an assurance that public safety is taken into account when cyanide is used, an updated environmental impact assessment report and safety precautions the company would take.

Speaking at the ground-breaking earlier, Adnan said the plant would create some 140 related economic activities.

Meanwhile, residents' spokesman Hue Fui How, 61, told reporters that they were not against commercial ventures but wanted the environment kept safe.

“It is not about my generation any more. It is about ensuring that future generations are safe,” he added.

Bukit Koman folk stage protest

Tuesday February 13, 2007 - The Star By SIMON KHOO

RAUB: A group of residents in Bukit Koman renewed their protest against the move by a local joint-venture company to extract gold from the mines here using cyanide.

The group comprising about 70 residents staged a protest outside the company here recently.

The spokesman for the group Wong Kin Hoong said some 3,000 residents in Bukit Koman would be directly affected as their houses were located about 300m from the mining site.

He said in June last year, they had held several discussions with Raub MP Datuk Dr Ng Yen Yen and Teras assemblyman Datuk Chan Chong Fah.

One voice: Residents staging a demonstration against using cyanide in gold mining activities in Bukit Koman recently.

“We hope the matter will not be swept under the carpet as our health is at stake.

“All in, over 50,000 people residing in Raub district will be at risk if the firm extracts gold using cyanide,” he said.

Cyanide is an extremely harmful chemical substance and may result in premature death.

Those exposed to the chemical may develop headache, nausea, dyspnoea (breathing difficulty), confusion, seizures, coma and cardiovascular collapse.

Wong said based on information he received, the company had been given approval to use the substance by the state Environment Department (DOE).

“If this information is correct, we hope the DOE will consider retracting the approval for the sake of the people.

Wong said several studies also revealed the wide usage of cyanide had caused considerable damage to the health of the people in Canada, Romania, Guyana, Kyrgyzstan and Papua New Guinea.

He urged the authorities to conduct a new Environment Impact Assessment on the viability of the project and its mining activities.

“Let us stress that we are not against gold mining activities if it is being conducted using conventional methods.

“The old method is not harmful to humans and the environment but will bring out about 20% of yields as compared to some 80% using cyanide,” he elaborated.

Raub is synonymous with gold mining activities and has a history dating back some 200 years.

The company in question, Raub Australia Gold Mining Sdn Bhd, started operations in the 1890s and ceased work in 1960.

However, in the 1980s, the firm resumed its operations after making a substantial investment.

The firm’s top management could not be reached for comment.

Living in Fear of Cyanide

January 31st, 2007 (Malaysia Kini)

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The residents of Kampung Baru Bukit Koman in Raub, Pahang are living in fear of cyanide poisoning after a company was given approval by the authorities to recover gold deposits using cyanide.

The residents are fearful that any leakages of cyanide into the area’s water system will be damaging to their health and the fertility of farms within the village and surrounding areas.

The gold mine has been in existence since 1898 but stopped operations in 1961. However, new mining technology using cyanide to extract gold from ‘gold tailings’ has made mining feasible again, bringing about much fear to the people of Bukit Koman.

Members of the committee against the use of cyanide at Bukit Koman relate to Malaysiakini their fears.

Camera: Shufiyan Shukur

Reporting: Beh Lih Yi / Kuek Ser Kuang Keng