Golden profits v environmental concerns
Eastern approaches 2013-09-11
Summary:
THE draft law recently adopted by the Romanian government that allows a Canadian company to dig for gold at Rosia Montana, a Carpathian town, made many Romanians very angry this week. (For a slide show on Rosia Montana, click here.) Thousands of people took the streets of Bucharest and other cities across the country to protest against the plans of a Canadian company, Gabriel Resources, to extract more than 300 tonnes of gold and 1500 tonnes of silver. The project is expected to bring a profit of $7.5 billion according to its investors.
The project at Rosia Montana, Europe’s largest opencast gold mine, has sparked a big controversy. Environmentalists and civic-rights groups are concerned about the use of cyanide in the extraction process. They believe this will destroy not only the environment, but also the rich cultural heritage of the area.
The draft law grants the government a royalty rate of 6% and increases its stake in the project to 25%, but many Romanian protesters believe this is not enough. It also declares the project...Continue reading