(Presentation by Joan Kuyek, National Coordinator)
Thank you for this opportunity to appear before the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development.
MiningWatch Canada is a pan-Canadian coalition of environmental, Aboriginal, social justice, development and labour...
I am writing to you on behalf of MiningWatch Canada regarding the tragic attack on 26 December 2002 upon community members from Canatuan, Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte. Madam President we wish to express through you our sympathy for the victims of this act of violence. It is of great personal regret...
On December 29, 2001, the National Post carried a story written by Brian Hutchinson entitled "Barrick's African Tribulations", about the removal of tens of thousands of artisanal miners by the Tanzanian government and a Canadian-owned Sutton Resources' subsidiary — Kahama Mining Corporation or...
Cottagers and residents of Bedford County, Ontario have found out what it means to lose the mineral rights to your property. If someone wants to prospect or develop a mine in your front yard, you are only entitled to compensation, not to stop it.
Bedford is in the Rideau Lakes area of the province...
There is growing public concern about the condition of fresh water in Canada. Mining affects fresh water through heavy use of water in processing ore, and through water pollution from discharged mine effluent and seepage from tailings and waste rock impoundments. There are various regulatory and...
In early October, Catherine Coumans visited the Philippines to work with three partner communities. We report on two issues — Placer Dome's responsibility for the perilous situation in Marinduque, and Crew Development Corporation's efforts to establish a nickel mine in Mindoro despite...
Ownership - Sutton Resources Ltd.1
Sutton Resources was incorporated under the laws of British Columbia on December 4, 1979. In 1996, the company had a number of subsidiaries. One of these was Kahama Mining Corporation which was incorporated in Tanzania, but was owned 100% by Romanex...
On September 27, 2001, MiningWatch Canada, the NGO Working Group on the Export Development Corporation and the Council of Canadians held a press conference to publicly release a video about the removal of small scale miners in Bulyanhulu in August 1996. At that time we called for an independent...
As a preamble to our comments on the proposed amendments to the Metal Mining Liquid Effluent Regulation under the Fisheries Act, I would like to convey our appreciation for the many years of work that you and your colleagues in Environment Canada and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans have...
The CEN Mining Caucus and AQUAMIN Reference Group participants to the MMLER review process rooted their recommendations on how to modernize the MMLERs on principles that they outlined in comments to Environment Canada in 1999 (March 1999; June 1999). These principles have already been recognized as...
Is it good enough to protect the health of Canadians, or our fish, wildlife, and water? Ten years ago, Environment Canada set out to strengthen and update the regulation for mine effluent. Pollution from mines can harm the environment generally, especially for the people and communities that depend...
Increasingly, international organisations such as the OECD, national policy makers and the public are engaging in a pressing debate about the need to promote more sustainable forms of production and consumption. This debate involves questions about the economic value of the environment and...
In 1977, the Metal Mining Liquid Effluent Regulations (MMLER) were promulgated under the Fisheries Act. In 1990, the Government of Canada announced its intention to update and strengthen the MMLER in its Green Plan, and the Aquatic Effects of Mining (AQUAMIN) process was established to...
The Curse of El Dorado has been made on behalf of SINTRAMINERCOL, the miners union in Colombia. It is an extremely powerful 35 minute video that captures the essence of what is happening in Colombia, the dispossession of the common people.
The scene is the beautiful San Lucas mountain range in...
[Report by MiningWatch Canada and the Sierra Club of Canada] Unlike most developed countries, Canada has no national program to deal with contaminated sites. Abandoned mines and tailings ponds create toxic nightmares, contaminating rivers, lakes and surrounding lands. Local communities are left to...
No one was thinking about the small Mayan community of San Andrés Minas, in Honduras, when political and business “leaders” met in Québec City, April 2001, to discuss the FTAA - “Free” Trade Agreement of the Americas. No one considered the community devastation wrought by Greenstone, a...