Marchamos por la vida

Gente de Crucitas, Chamorro, Coopevega, Ciudad Quesada, La Tigra, Pital, Aguas Zarcas, Santa Rosa de Pocosol, Guatuso, Sarapiquí, Zarcero, Palmares, San Ramón, Heredia, San José y Talamanca, entre otros, se hicieron presentes en la Marcha por la vida y festival por la paz con la naturaleza.


Contrario a los deseos de la empresa minera y a la posición de parte de la Supervisión Escolar del MEP en la zona, de prohibir a los docentes participar de la marcha, la convocatoria resultó exitosa.

Grupos organizados con las mantas que les representan, música, zancos, disfraces y pancartas, describió el panorama de la manifestación de muchas personas que dijeron NO al decreto de interés público y conveniencia nacional al proyecto minero en Crucitas de Cutris.

En medio de todo un Palacio Municipal con la calle cerrada con una línea de estañones llenos de agua y el resguardo de oficiales de la Fuerza Pública como si se tratara de una guerra. Para nadie fue sorpresa que la cantidad de riñas, pleitos, quiebra de vidrios y demás asuntos terroristas solo estuvieran en la mente del alcalde de San Carlos.

La participación de personas de las comunidades aledañas al proyecto minero, se trajo al piso el argumento de que todas las personas de esos pueblos apoyan a la empresa. Un bus lleno, y varios vehículos particulares, transportaron a esas personas, y si se toma en cuenta de que se trata de pueblos pequeños, es un buen porcentaje de la población de dichos lugares.

La marcha fue seguida de una actividad cultural en la que predominó la música, aunque hubo espacio también para la poesía de escritores sancarleños. En los discursos, una niña palmareña atrajo la atención de todos con una clase ambiental que bien se la desearía el Ministro Dobles para aprender algo del tema. Bien esta pequeña, con su discurso sobre la importancia de proteger la naturaleza para las generaciones presentes y futuras, podría ser la asesora directa de Dobles para que no se embarque ni él ni Arias.

Además, un líder de Talamanca mencionó que la amenaza minera también se yergue sobre ellos y criticó duramente a los políticos que impidieron que se les consultara en el caso del TLC, tal como lo señaló la Sala IV.

La música se mantuvo por horas y el festival cerró con la tarde una jornada en la que mucha gente se manifestó en contra de la minería a cielo abierto y exigió la derogatoria del famoso decreto.

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Foto: Foto: Diario Digital Nuestro País

Costa Rican gold mine suspended over pollution risks

A multinational coalition of environmental and human rights organisations is calling on Canadian mining company Glencairn Gold Corporation to disclose information about suspected cyanide and metals pollution from its Bellavista gold mine in Costa Rica. Glencairn shut down the mine in late July, following heavy rains that caused substantial earth movements, and has reported in financial statements that the mine “may remain closed indefinitely”, but has not made available any information about the extent of current or potential damage. The groups also demand proper clean-up and remediation of any current or future contamination.

Bellavista is an openpit gold mine, and uses cyanide heap-leaching – in which huge piles of crushed ore are soaked with a cyanide solution – to extract gold. According to Glencairn, heavy rainfall in May led to significant earth movements that disturbed these massive heaps of cyanide-tainted wastes as well as other waste rock piles at the mine. Experts familiar with the mine fear that such conditions could lead to pollution of water and soil with cyanide and other contaminants owing to a rupture in the leach-pad lining. Glencairn has said that it first noticed cracks in two corners of the leach pad in May, but the company continued to operate the mine and apply cyanide until July 25.

“Putting an openpit gold mine in a mountainous, tropical region, prone to landslides and torrential rainfall, is a disaster waiting to happen,” says Interamerican Association for Environmental Defence chemist Dr Anna Cederstav. In 2005, Cederstav had testified before Costa Rica’s Supreme Court about the likely impacts of the Bellavista mine. Even before the mine was approved, Cederstav and other independent technical experts had warned that the region’s topo-graphy and rainfall make it an inappropriate location for a large-scale mine.

Cleaning up and con-trolling mining pollution can be extremely expensive, costing hundreds of millions of dollars for long-term treatment to protect water supplies. Glencairn has provided just $250 000 in financial guarantees for Bellavista – funds which are intended for mine clean-up, and do not provide insurance against mishaps like the unstable leach pad.

The coalition calls on the Costa Rican government to commission a team of independent technical experts to conduct a review of the Bellavista mine, and to ensure that Glencairn will undertake and fully cover the costs of all necessary mitigation and remediation.

“Glencairn must make sure that communities around the mine are protected from pollution, and that includes paying for clean-up,” says Earthworks and the “No Dirty Gold” campaign representative, Payal Sampat. “Otherwise, taxpayers and communities are stuck with the bill – and the pollution.”

Costa Rica outlawed all new openpit mining in 2002, but the Bellavista mine was given a permit prior to the ban. It is the only large operating openpit mine in this ecotourism-dependent country.

“Costa Rica has had the foresight to ban openpit mining, which can be incredibly destructive to people and the environment,” said Costa Rican Friends of the Earth spokesperson Gabriel Rivas-Ducca. “We hope this incident will serve as a warning to other regions that are opening their doors to gold-mining.”

Cyanide and the metal contamination produced at mines such as this are toxic to humans and extremely dangerous for wildlife, especially aquatic species. If mixed with acidic water, typically present at gold mines, cyanide generates hydrogen cyanide gas, an even more potent poison. Gold-mining can also cause significant pollution of soil and water with sulphuric acid drainage and metals such as arsenic and mercury.

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