who said there was no environmental impact? Let me guess, you drive a car and use a computer. Try not to be a hypocrite
- Thread starter Dolores
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New tailings dam would require relocation of a community near Cotuí
A dam is an engineering structure.
DAMN is a Studio album by Kendrick Lamar
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Subject of the thread. Reference is made to post #1
"Populations in other sites for the tailings dam have rejected the installation of the tailings dam."
The population that will impacted should also reject this site.
Reference is made to post #9 in this thread.
The DR government does benefit greatly from the increased royalties, but only after the previous government threatened Barrick Resources after years of low royalties. The jobs provided to locals are a direct economic benefit to the economy of the towns in the area.
The proposed new tailings dam has short term and long term impacts. The short term is the relocation of community residents and the initial excavation work to construct the new dam. Where will the excavated earth be located? What will be the sediment runoff impacts on streams and rivers in the immediate area? What will be the impact of sediment runoff on the fish populations in the area?
The long term impacts have to be addressed as well. Will the new tailings area have a clay or impermeable synthetic liner to prevent leaching of toxic chemicals such as sodium cyanide into the water table and nearby water courses? Who maintains the dam and tailings area after the gold is depleted and the company has moved on? Will the government ensure the company has an environment liability bond in place to deal with impacts after the company has vacated the site?
The greater concern here is the lack of legislation to ensure all construction impacts are mitigated properly and staff are on site to monitor the construction. We know the government sees the mine as a royalties cash cow and we know from experience the government’s political will to enforce the existing legislation takes second place to economic development.
The project will go ahead, come hell or high water. The environmental and social costs remain to be seen. I’ve seen the impact of breached tailing dams. Lawyers get rich and nobody wins.
Regarding the deposition of oily water from cruise ship bilges, cruise ships have mandatory oily water separators on board and national and international marine laws require that any oily water, if discharged overboard, has to meet a very low parts per million oil to water ratio to limit the environmental impact. Cruise ships discharge their treated oil water to shore side facilities at their home ports. It’s significantly cheaper than a fine and the aggravation of the bad press associated with ship spills.
The proposed new tailings dam has short term and long term impacts. The short term is the relocation of community residents and the initial excavation work to construct the new dam. Where will the excavated earth be located? What will be the sediment runoff impacts on streams and rivers in the immediate area? What will be the impact of sediment runoff on the fish populations in the area?
The long term impacts have to be addressed as well. Will the new tailings area have a clay or impermeable synthetic liner to prevent leaching of toxic chemicals such as sodium cyanide into the water table and nearby water courses? Who maintains the dam and tailings area after the gold is depleted and the company has moved on? Will the government ensure the company has an environment liability bond in place to deal with impacts after the company has vacated the site?
The greater concern here is the lack of legislation to ensure all construction impacts are mitigated properly and staff are on site to monitor the construction. We know the government sees the mine as a royalties cash cow and we know from experience the government’s political will to enforce the existing legislation takes second place to economic development.
The project will go ahead, come hell or high water. The environmental and social costs remain to be seen. I’ve seen the impact of breached tailing dams. Lawyers get rich and nobody wins.
Regarding the deposition of oily water from cruise ship bilges, cruise ships have mandatory oily water separators on board and national and international marine laws require that any oily water, if discharged overboard, has to meet a very low parts per million oil to water ratio to limit the environmental impact. Cruise ships discharge their treated oil water to shore side facilities at their home ports. It’s significantly cheaper than a fine and the aggravation of the bad press associated with ship spills.
If Barrick Pueblo Viejo is such a modern mine, why are they not talking about dry tailings?
yes but of course. Cruise ships plant flowers everywhere they go and recycle all of their waste into a lavender mist. Meanwhile back in reality we all use products and byproducts of mining operations like the Pueblo Viejo mine. The mine which has been in operation for about 45 years and only stopped in the 90s when the price of silver and gold made it difficult to profit. Mining technology is so much more advanced now the environmental impact is a fraction of what it once was.
The cyanide is destroyed by using msbs before it leaves the plant. The destruction will be way below the 0.5 ppm limit. You get more cyanide exposure eating an apricot seed
The Canadian Mining Company Dominicans Call “Worse Than Columbus”
We traveled to the Dominican Republic to talk to rural farmers and workers battling a Canadian mining company. “We had no concept of what the devil was until Barrick Gold came to our lands,” one person told us.
jacobin.com
Here is one perspective from about a year ago.
Note the date of this press release by Oceana. October 2009. The cruise ship industry has changed significantly since then because of new laws and stricter enforcement. Especially in US and Canadian waters. Modern cruise ships have sewage treatment plants and oily water separators. The offloading of garbage, often considered hazardous waste in many countries is also strictly controlled.
If the only issue was cyanide deposition in the tailings and the cyanide was treated properly, the tailings waste wouldn’t be a health or environmental concern. Gold mining processing waste contains many other types of toxins. Mercury, cadmium, and arsenic are just a few. Regardless of what’s being discharged a liner should be part of the tailings holding area.
Post #12 is a red herring...
Red herrings are a common diversionary tactic when someone wants to shift the focus of an argument to something easier or safer to address."
Those running down that rabbit hole following up on the point about cruise ships allows the author of post number twelve to successfully distracted attention away from the real dangers of the tailings dam proposed construction project. A project that will put the not haves into danger and only benefit the privileged.
Reference is made to the article in post number #30
Red Herring
"A red herring is an argument that uses confusion or distraction to shift attention away from a topic and toward a false conclusion. Red herrings usually contain an unimportant fact, idea, or event that has little relevance to the real issue.Red herrings are a common diversionary tactic when someone wants to shift the focus of an argument to something easier or safer to address."
Those running down that rabbit hole following up on the point about cruise ships allows the author of post number twelve to successfully distracted attention away from the real dangers of the tailings dam proposed construction project. A project that will put the not haves into danger and only benefit the privileged.
Reference is made to the article in post number #30
This is such a fascinating and eye-opening post. Did you construct it all by yourself?
Tailings Dam Project
What is being proposed if it fails will cause catastrophic environmental damage.
Only the privileged will benefit from this.
"Part of the factory area was buried; a large pit was formed in the tailings pond, the dam body was flushed with a gap of about 70 to 80 meters, causing 7.5 mu [0.5 ha] of arbor forest land to be buried, more than 200 meters of seasonal ditches and rural roads were blocked, and part of the surrounding walls of adjacent enterprises were washed away."
"at least 20-30 acres [8-12 hectares] of farmland were submerged under the iron ore slurry while two ponds were contaminated, causing a fish kill; a security guard is reported missing"
What is being proposed if it fails will cause catastrophic environmental damage.
Only the privileged will benefit from this.
"Part of the factory area was buried; a large pit was formed in the tailings pond, the dam body was flushed with a gap of about 70 to 80 meters, causing 7.5 mu [0.5 ha] of arbor forest land to be buried, more than 200 meters of seasonal ditches and rural roads were blocked, and part of the surrounding walls of adjacent enterprises were washed away."
"at least 20-30 acres [8-12 hectares] of farmland were submerged under the iron ore slurry while two ponds were contaminated, causing a fish kill; a security guard is reported missing"
Chronology of major tailings dam failures
www.wise-uranium.org
Good research Vegas. The last tailings holding lagoon failure I did an assessment on was a release from a gold mine in a remote area of my province. The release resulted in a major fish kill. The company received a large fine for the spill, was was ordered to rehabilitate the mine tailings area, and restock the fish population in the impacted river. I doubt that would ever happen in the DR.
The DR gold mine had a history of off site impacts under previous ownership and continues to do so under Barrick Resources. While they own and operate the mine, they are legally responsible for the maintenance and operation of the tailings area. At some point in the future, the gold ore recovery will not be financially viable. If the company walks away and no environmental bond is in place, it becomes an orphan site. The DR government doesn’t have the resources and expertise to mitigate a massive tailings release and compensate all affected parties. If some fly by night mining company takes over to reclaim the gold content in the tailings and causes an uncontrolled release, the government not the company will be on the hook for site restoration and compensation.
Barrick‘s worldwide environmental track record is dismal and they only respond to environmental problems when it’s financially beneficial for them to do so. You can check out their international track record at www. corpwatch.org. They published a 28 page report titled Barricks Dirty Secrets.
lol. The company you speak of employs geologist, chemists and engineers with PhDs in their respective fields. Not to mentions accountants and insurance specialists. Thier mission is to exploit the maximum amount of product out of the ore in the most cost-effective way. Do you really think they don't consider the cost of environmental damage? The insurance companies have a huge say on what is and is not done as they don't want to face a huge payout. You report that you did an "assessment of a gold mine", well I guess you know the massive undertaking it is to process gold and silver from this mine which is one of the biggest in the world. It is nothing like those reality shows on T.V. A couple billion-dollar investment is not going to be run by a few yahoos driving pick up trucks. ALL the people here benefit from the massive tax infusion and employment.
Reference is made to post number #1
"Around the world, settling ponds for mining waste are being discontinued, due to the many accidents at high costs to the communities. These are being replaced with dry tailings solutions with new technologies."
This is the attentive management that the company provides:
www.corpwatch.org
I am not interested in receiving any benefits that this company may offer.
I am not privileged nor do I want to be if this is the costs others have to pay for my privilege.
"Around the world, settling ponds for mining waste are being discontinued, due to the many accidents at high costs to the communities. These are being replaced with dry tailings solutions with new technologies."
Thank you for the referral to the informative article.
This is the attentive management that the company provides:
Barrick Gold Compensates Rape Victims in Papua New Guinea | corpwatch
Barrick Gold, the world's largest gold mining company, has agreed to compensate 14 individuals for violent acts committed near the Porgera mine in Papua New Guinea. Eleven of the cases involved sexual violence such as rape. Some 120 others had previously accepted cash settlements of about $10,000.
I am not interested in receiving any benefits that this company may offer.
I am not privileged nor do I want to be if this is the costs others have to pay for my privilege.
Years of dealing with industrial environmental damage has taught me that industries preach environmental stewardship but the reality is, they consider the damage they do and the resulting fines and rehabilitation as the cost of doing business. They are held to a stricter standard in Canada, the US, the UK, and most European countries. Their standards drop when they operate in countries like the DR where assessment standards and enforcement are lax. You can put as much lipstick on the tailing proposal pig as you want, but it’s still a pig.