Risks
Economic and Social
The gold and silver ore exploitation in the area is due to about 17 years. As there is no plan to cover the period after, this means that after the time will pass unemployment will still be a problem in the area. So, the economic solution doesn’t cover a long period of time and only offers a short time proposition. Moreover the individuals will face with a destroyed environment, and without the possibility to gain economical resources from tourism. The unemployment problem is amplified by the presence in the area of a population from other places and settled during the business.
Judicial
An important aspect is the compatibility of the project with the European legislation. A study made by technocrats for the E.U. (P. Fischer and A. Lengauer – from the Institute of European Law in Vienna) concludes that the technology proposed in the Rosia Montana is not according to the Impact Evaluation over the Environment Rule (85/337/EEC, and the rule 2001/42/EC of the European Parliament), and the method of separating gold with cyanide is against the rule 80/68/EEC (17 December 1979) which refers to the protection of water. Also the resettlement measures that the government should employ against the individuals that live in the extended project area and refuse to sell the property, would break Article 8 of the European Convention of the Human Rights which already is available in Romania.
Another issue is linked to the percentages held in the business. At the moment Gabriel Resources Ltd. holds 80% of the shares and the Romanian state 20%. But according to the same European Convention the Romanian state should have 85% of the shares to respect the “public interest and economic profit of the country”.
Regarding the use of toxic substances the project does not respect the Berlin Convention (10 October 2001) regarding banning of the use of cyanide in mining exploitation on the territory of the European Union.
Technological Risks
The technology used is based on extracting the gold ore from the rock using sodium cyanide. This process is similar with the one in used in the mines from Baia Mare, which made the object of a process due to pollution. Moreover, worldwide after 1990 there were about 30 accidents in mines that used similar methods, but in less populated areas. Most of the incidents were due to deficiencies in the protecting walls (72%), about 14% of the situations were because leaks of the pipes, and 13% were due to accidents of transportation. Besides the cyanide, a threat is presented by the waste generated during the technological process which can severely pollute the surroundings and can not be neutralised. And neither the products used to neutralise the cyanide are not safe, as in large quantities, though less toxic still represent a problem.
Archaeological and tourist’s issues
The surface exploitation (in an open quarry) determines significant degradation of the land as it creates huge craters and amounts of sterile materials. This way the landscape is affected cancelling its tourist potential, eliminating its value over time of the area. The controlled explosions used (five times a week) might create vibrations which negatively affect the neighbouring areas, determining a possible collapse of buildings or archeologically researched galleries. The archaeological site, according to the partial investigations is considered to be unique in Europe, and its existence can be endangered by the mining excavations.
Economic and Social
The gold and silver ore exploitation in the area is due to about 17 years. As there is no plan to cover the period after, this means that after the time will pass unemployment will still be a problem in the area. So, the economic solution doesn’t cover a long period of time and only offers a short time proposition. Moreover the individuals will face with a destroyed environment, and without the possibility to gain economical resources from tourism. The unemployment problem is amplified by the presence in the area of a population from other places and settled during the business.
Judicial
An important aspect is the compatibility of the project with the European legislation. A study made by technocrats for the E.U. (P. Fischer and A. Lengauer – from the Institute of European Law in Vienna) concludes that the technology proposed in the Rosia Montana is not according to the Impact Evaluation over the Environment Rule (85/337/EEC, and the rule 2001/42/EC of the European Parliament), and the method of separating gold with cyanide is against the rule 80/68/EEC (17 December 1979) which refers to the protection of water. Also the resettlement measures that the government should employ against the individuals that live in the extended project area and refuse to sell the property, would break Article 8 of the European Convention of the Human Rights which already is available in Romania.
Another issue is linked to the percentages held in the business. At the moment Gabriel Resources Ltd. holds 80% of the shares and the Romanian state 20%. But according to the same European Convention the Romanian state should have 85% of the shares to respect the “public interest and economic profit of the country”.
Regarding the use of toxic substances the project does not respect the Berlin Convention (10 October 2001) regarding banning of the use of cyanide in mining exploitation on the territory of the European Union.
Technological Risks
The technology used is based on extracting the gold ore from the rock using sodium cyanide. This process is similar with the one in used in the mines from Baia Mare, which made the object of a process due to pollution. Moreover, worldwide after 1990 there were about 30 accidents in mines that used similar methods, but in less populated areas. Most of the incidents were due to deficiencies in the protecting walls (72%), about 14% of the situations were because leaks of the pipes, and 13% were due to accidents of transportation. Besides the cyanide, a threat is presented by the waste generated during the technological process which can severely pollute the surroundings and can not be neutralised. And neither the products used to neutralise the cyanide are not safe, as in large quantities, though less toxic still represent a problem.
Archaeological and tourist’s issues
The surface exploitation (in an open quarry) determines significant degradation of the land as it creates huge craters and amounts of sterile materials. This way the landscape is affected cancelling its tourist potential, eliminating its value over time of the area. The controlled explosions used (five times a week) might create vibrations which negatively affect the neighbouring areas, determining a possible collapse of buildings or archeologically researched galleries. The archaeological site, according to the partial investigations is considered to be unique in Europe, and its existence can be endangered by the mining excavations.
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