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COLOMBIA: The Gold Rush

By: Alfredo Molano Jimenez / Special Envoy

Santander, between progress and deforestation. Chronicle of gold mining in the mountains.

Photo: Gabriel Aponte

If granted the environmental permit, this is the last photo of heath.

Santurbán The Moor, the source of the water that feeds Bucaramanga and other areas of Santander, is facing a new challenge: large-scale mining, one of the locomotives that the government has announced.

The Serrania de Santurbán, in Santander, located in the center of the debate on the effects of mining in the country. What is the background is a struggle between the mining and energy development, embodied by President Santos as one of the locomotives of the economy, and natural wealth and biodiversity of Colombia. Two legitimate positions that are opposed and on which the President himself has referred to as the big question that the world is how to reconcile these two visions of the planet? The one suggested that despite the environmental effects are greater the benefit and progress, and one assumes that the irreversible damage caused by these projects will leave a desert country and shabby.
A few hours from Bucaramanga, by road that leads to Santander Norte de Santander, is the mountainous region of Santurbán, 92 thousand hectares, which is intertwined with the sky, a fog bank whence the water that feeds parts of the two departments. Gold mining there is an ancient practice. From colonial times, these mountains have been carved to get the precious mineral, but they refuse and keep inside. Only small quantities are expelled through the internal currents of the earth and end up in rivers that form at the foot of the mountain.
Since the mid-90's started the boom of the multinational mining. Many companies were they put the eye in Santander, among these the powerful Greystar Resources Ltd. A Canadian multinational which the International Finance Corporation (ICF, in English), World Bank agency that invests in private projects, is the largest shareholder, with 11 % and JP Morgan, one of the largest banks in the world.
In one of the peaks of these mountains, at 3,900 meters, the Greystar nailed the flag and baptized Angostura Project. Today, the company is expecting that the Environment Ministry granted the environmental license that would begin the operational phase, which lasted until 2025, but the environmental movement have cry to heaven and to the Attorney Alejandro Ordóñez, two days ago, presented his position, to ask the Ministry of Environment to consider not issue the license, despite the new mining code prohibited the mining of high mountains, this regulatory framework does not apply to the Angostura project, because when you gave there was no prohibition in this regard.

Angostura Project in 1994, reached Santurbán Greystar. On the slope, in the municipality of California-named probably seeking to replicate what was experienced United States in the 20 -, is the headquarters of the project. In this village municipality is home to more than 1,850 people, mostly engaged in mining. Here people support the company, all companies that have come in search of gold, which are more than five and its subcontractors pass from the ten companies.
The Greystar has acquired the mining rights over 30 hectares in the area, but the Angostura Project use only a thousand and in the process of exploration and is 15 years and have invested more than $ 100 million . According to the company in those thousand hectares is estimated that over 7.7 million ounces of gold -16 tonnes of gold annually, and nearly 80 million -72 ounces of silver tons annually, making this area one of the largest gold deposits in South America. But environmentalists warn that there are 100,000 times more arsenic than gold, and wonder where all that anger to stop toxic mineral. Environmental impact

"Nobody can deny that the extraction of gold, and this project specifically, has a strong environmental impact, but you have to weigh are the social and economic benefits offered by the mining industry," explains one of the engineers the Greystar.
For its part, the Committee for the Defence of Santurbán Paramo, consisting of associations environmentalists, unions, students, academics, Santander Society of Engineers, the Society of Public Improvements, Fenalco Santander and political parties like the Greens and the Democratic Pole, are opposing the project, arguing that there will be irreversible damage to water sources that nourish the metropolitan area. "The committee is not against mining projects, is against projects that affect present and future possibility of water for the metropolitan area and some populations and Norte de Santander department. We are proposing alternative development proposals for the region, "says Luis Carlos Estupiñán, one of committee members.
The project proposes to open a cut of 220 hectares with a depth of 200 meters at the top of the mountain, coming through the gold. In addition, there shall be two spaces for the treatment of toxic substances used in the mineral extraction process, one will have 110 hectares on the creek Angosturas, and the other 90 acres on the creek Páez. The two fall into the river gorges Surata. The company's engineers say there is no scientific possibility that leaks of toxic substances, as it tries to make a waterproofing technology.
The Greystar ensures that there will be no impact on water sources in the metropolitan area, because according to warnings, the river Surata represents a minimum rate of water entering Bucaramanga. But environmentalists insist that this river, in times of crisis, providing 70% of water consumed in the capital of the department.
According to figures presented by the environmental impact study of Greystar, the project will use 40 000 kilos of cyanide and 230 tons of ANFO per day.

social impact is no doubt that such projects benefit a large number of people. That the inhabitants of Surat, California and veins, to mention some of the centers where they live fever gold, are in favor of mining, open pit or in any way. Especially if you have benefited from some of the projects of social responsibility that mining companies often promote their areas of influence in some way to mitigate the impact caused by mining.
http://www.elespectador.com/ print / temadeldia / articuloimpreso-241 885-foot- of-gold-santurban

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Santurbán open-pit Mining

"This massive mining is done by the company Gravicol. The community has never received any benefits. What I get is environmental pollution, water pollution, and in addition, effects on the degradation of the social fabric. I'm not talking about the irreparable damage to the topsoil. That "hole" has myriad effects, and no social benefits, despite being shielded by legislation that does not protect the sustainability of the country, and has nothing to do with intelligence or strategic responsibility for the country. The mining issue is not to "hollow" and get treasures. Irreversible effects is affected with natural and human communities, directly affecting the country's future. This is done within the framework of a country that has no political or environmental strategy: have not seen the effects of winter? If you remove the topsoil, do not expect anything else, only worse.

open pit mining in the world has proven to be an issue that causes negative effects: in Africa, British Columbia, Guatemala, Peru ,.... Implementation, as they want to do in Santander can not affect homeostasis of the planet systems (climate, ciclosde carbon, water, nitrogen, etc). and implementation, given, must be highly technical, but above all, must be accompanied by a comprehensive plan for mitigation, compensation, improvement and investment in sustainability. I'm not an environmental activist, but work in communication for development and I know that this type of mining only is destroying the country's future poverty and ensuring that our economic, environmental and human, is guaranteed. "

Hernando Mestre commentary about the picture above.
Photo taken from the official ; Gravicol , Gravel company operating in the area

http://mariasimonaeneljardin.blogspot.com/2010/12/mineria-cielo-abierto-en-tabio.html

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Tabio POPULAR MOBILIZATION AGAINST MINING OPEN IN COLOMBIA

NOT ASHANTI GOLD IN COLOMBIA AND LATIN AMERICA.
LIFE BY THE WATER AND NOT A NATURAL FOREST WE LEAVE MINE DESERTS AND DEATH
popular struggle deny environmental permits granted by the government corrupt Alvaro Uribe and the Colombian bourgeoisie to prey Colombian territory




http://utopialapalabra.blogspot.com/2010/12/movilizacion-popular-contra-la-mineria.html

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CAJAMARCA MINING MEDIA AND CENSORSHIP

Opinion article in the newspaper criticized the front, Bucaramanga / Santander / Colombia.
Friday, November 12, 2010 21:23 Quesada writes a column every Friday for the past two years in the newspaper "The Front", in Bucaramanga, but never had any problems. However, when sending your column last week entitled "Greystar SANCTIONED BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT MAL" This was the answer:
RE: ARCA II: PENALTIES FOR MISUSE OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT Greystar
Thursday, November 4, 2010, 4:08
pm From: "Claudia Milena Benavides"
A: "Claudio Beltrán"

Good afternoon:

I tell you, Claudio, I can not publish his column about Greystar Resources for not being compatible with the thought of newspaper's management. I hope again within 7 days with their contributions.
I hope you understand the reasons. Thanks

This is the censored article: Greystar
SANCTIONED BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL MISHANDLING
Blue Gold, as they call water is the most valuable that exists on earth. We are already living the prophesied water war, this is one of their battles. Refresh the memory:
Angostura The mining project of Greystar operating for years, destroying water and biodiversity, and now intends to move and treat 1,075 million tonnes of rock which used 7,000 tons of the explosive ANFO month and 1,200 tons of sodium cyanide per month (poison and deforestation unrecoverable). The law states that over 3 thousand meters above sea level wilderness area and could not be exploitation and the Greystar's Angostura project has most of its location there.
However, the firm's experts argue that it has not been recognized. Santurbán is seen as a wilderness protection area, subpáramo and high Andean forest, which classifies it as an area of \u200b\u200bhigh environmental fragility and therefore very important ecosystem, such as water recharge area and wildlife refuge. No matter if a paper says that is an area of \u200b\u200bwasteland or not: it will affect us as the reservoir Bucaramanga structures are within 30 or 35 km as the crow line of site operation.
It would seriously jeopardize the quality and quantity of the vital liquid of water bodies Surata river providers, using the cyanide leaching technique. Cyanide mining was banned in Germany in 2002 and the European Parliament to ban it just for all other countries in May 2010.
The requested flows for different stages of the project, exceed 50 percent of the average flow available in different water bodies. This multinational mining will take over the high mountain lakes, which are the headwaters of rivers that feed our metropolitan aqueduct.
All this will destroy the wilderness of Santurbán, which removed 11.5 million ounces of gold and 61 million ounces of silver over 15 years of operating these mines in the municipalities of California, streaks, Surat, Carnage and Tona.
"Greystar pollution in the watersheds will be zero percent," noted the company's environmental manager, Leonardo Di Mare. But the multinational ", supposedly careful of the environment", has just been fined by the CMDB by following charges, among others:
"The sistemasde treatment of drainage tunnels and tailings leachate has not complied with the provisions of Article 72 of the 1984 decreto1594 standard of discharge for discharges to a water source.
-file does not exist with the environmental documents or a blog for inteventoria and environmental monitoring.
"No septic systems have resulted in most of the sites you have and need the system. "In the dump
The lazy, there was diversion of the stream channel of the same name and is not aware of the permit of the CMDB to the intervention.
I wonder where the courage Santander, if left alone to protest over trifles, to insult the bad driver who parked his car, or to complain about stupid things, like argue because they changed the schedule of the novel that we like. Once we lavantabámos as one man, "Always free in our mountains," and we walked through the madman will shift. Today, when our future and that of our descendants is seriously threatened by the greed of foreigners overpowering, we were looking to see what happens. Sacudámonos the drowsiness and get out to protest in the streets, we support the leaders and environmentalists fighting to stop an outburst as this mining project.
If this is the Greystar our land in the exploration phase, how will the exploitation?

As a result Claudio Beltran gave up his column in the Front and on Saturday November 13, the Programme Manager PLANET Caracol, we will be interviewed on this affront to freedom of expression that should have everything a newspaper columnist who is respected. This radio show airs from 9 to 10 am on AM dial 880 from Bucaramanga, at 810 AM or 100 FM in Bogotá.

RESIGNATION LETTER SENT BY CLAUDIO

Zapatoca BERTRAM, November 9, 2010
Dear Rafael, hereby
email I announce my resignation to the column I've written for your newspaper every week for over two years.
I appreciate the space that opened me to express my opinion about environmental issues, issues that you may remember when we met, I expressed as the most urgent and extremely serious for our species and our great home, Planet Earth.
not know the nostalgia that makes me stop sending the column, but to do honor to the principles, but when the matter is life or death, the destruction of all a beautiful wasteland. The figures say exploit billion tons of rock with explosives and use toneladasde 7000 1200 tons of cyanide each month, which is simply absurd when the moors and wetlands are the most valuable that exists on a planet suffering from global warming, are wonderful water plants inhabited by mermaids, nymphs and pixies. They told me they are angry at the alleged sacrilege. Water, blue gold, is too important, is sacred to replace it with a metal ground, the one is a treasure from heaven, and the other is just land. Santurbán entire ecosystem, its fauna and flora, native species are somewhat valuable, are worth infinitely more than the 11.5 million ounces of gold and 61 million ounces of silver to foreigners intend to extract.
Your position on this ecocide seems possible lack of objectivity and biased by criticizing my writing on the subject, when it is assumed that journalism should focus on both sides of the conflict, as it did when I wrote rejecting Hidrosogamoso building, company also supports.
Resignation from this server column and their reasons for doing so, will be announced on the radio program "Planeta" of Caracol, on Saturday, God willing. What you get in the 880 AM dial in Bucaramanga, or at 810 AM or 100 FM in Bogotá.
Despite our differences, we will continue offering my friendship and respect for your tenacious work as a journalist, which extend to the editor Claudia Milena Benavides.
Peace, strength and joy, Beltran Claudio Q.

NOTE: The censor is called Rafael Serrano Prada. He was parliamentary pension millionaire today enjoys. And it's profitable businesses in his newspaper. Censorship is because he seeks monetary benefits with Greystar, a company that contaminated with cyanide water taken by bumangueses. But that he would not care, above puts the money chasing!
"
If we surrender now, you never know what will be our defeat." (Homer J. Simpson).