Administration "Good Samaritan" Mine Cleanup Bill Comes Up Short
May 10, 2006
Washington, D.C. -- EARTHWORKS has been working for over a decade to bring attention to the serious issue of abandoned metal mines in the West. Communities, agricultural lands, and our fish and wildlife resources are at risk from the water pollution caused by these old mines. A real solution is needed to address this pervasive problem that affects many western watersheds.
Tagged with: mining, epa, abandoned mines, mining reform
EPA: Metal Mining Most Toxic Industry in America
April 13, 2006
Multinational companies that mine metals--such as gold, silver and copper--produce more toxic waste than any other industry in the country, according to the EPA's annual Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) released yesterday.
According to theTRI,1.1 billion pounds of toxics were released by the metal mining industry, also known as hardrock mining, in 2004--25% of all toxics released by U.S. industry overall. This includes 105 million pounds of arsenic, 369 million pounds of lead and 4 million pounds of mercury.
Tagged with: mining, toxics, mercury, tri
Interior Secretary Gale Norton Resigns
March 10, 2006
Gale Norton leaves a legacy of unprecedented kowtowing to extractive industries at the expense of the public interest. Among her actions on behalf of the mining industry she:
* eviscerated environmental mining regulations that protected the public and public waters from destructive mining practices;
* issued a legal opinion that effectively legalized unlimited toxic mine waste dumping on public lands;
* set a horrible precedent in permitting a gold mine that will pollute surface and groundwater for tens of thousands of years.
Tagged with: mining, interior department
Eight of the World's Leading Jewelry Retailers Urge Mining Industry To Clean Up
February 13, 2006
New York City- For the first time ever, eight of the world's top jewelry retailers have pledged to move away from "dirty" gold sales and are calling on mining corporations to ensure that gold is produced in more socially and environmentally responsible ways. The retailers, which are the Zale Corp., the Signet Group (the parent firm of Sterling and Kay Jewelers), Tiffany & Co., Helzberg Diamonds, Fortunoff, Cartier, Piaget, and Van Cleef & Arpels, are being praised by the No Dirty Gold campaign today in a full-page ad in The New York Times, timed to coincide with Valentine's Day, one of the biggest jewelry-buying holidays in the United States.
"Because jewelry retailers buy the majority of gold produced worldwide, they have the power to help clean up the mining industry," said Payal Sampat, co-director of the No Dirty Gold campaign and international campaign director for EARTHWORKS. "We applaud the leadership of these companies. It's an important first step."
Tagged with: gold, no dirty gold, jewelry retailers, golden rules
World Bank Criticized over Approval of Controversial Gold Mine in Ghana
February 2, 2006
On January 31, 2006, the Board of Directors of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank's private sector arm, approved loans amounting to USD $125 million for Denver-based Newmont Mining Company's controversial Afaho gold mining project in Ghana. Ghanaian and international human rights and environmental NGOs had previously called on the IFC Board to postpone loan consideration until IFC and Newmont had fully addressed the project's human rights and environmental problems.
Tagged with: mining, gold, international, ghana
World Bank Urged to Postone Loan for Controversial Gold Mine in Ghana
January 30, 2006
A group of Ghanaian and international organizations is urging the World Bank to postpone funding for a new gold mining project in Ghana until the Bank addresses the project's human rights and environmental problems. Tomorrow, the Bank's Board of Directors is to consider loans of $125 million by the International Finance Corporation (the Bank's private sector arm) to Newmont Mining Corporation, one of the world's largest mining companies, for the development of the Ahafo gold mine project in western Ghana.
Tagged with: mining, gold, international, world bank, ghana, miga
Controversial Mining Subtitle Withdrawn from Budget Bill
December 13, 2005
Today, December 13, 2005, Congressman Jim Gibbons (R-Nevada), Chairman of the House Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee announced that he was officially dropping the controversial mining provisions that he and House Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo (R-California) inserted into a budget reconciliation bill.
"We applaud Congressman Gibbons' decision to drop the mining subtitle from the budget reconciliation bill," said Stephen D'Esposito, president of EARTHWORKS. "We welcome the call of Representative Gibbons, and the call of Senators around the West from both parties, to consider meaningful mining reform in the coming year and we look forward to working with all parties to promote the multiple goals of protecting communities and our public lands, safeguarding our natural resource heritage, and ensuring economic development and responsible mining practices."
Tagged with: mining, public lands, congress
Jewelers of America Urges Congress To Strip Pombo's Land Grab from Budget Reconciliation Bill
November 15, 2005
EARTHWORKS, Oxfam America, and Westerners for Responsible Mining applaud commitment by nation's leading retail jewelers to protect America's treasured public lands, including the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness
Washington, DC--Jewelers of America, the nation's largest retail jewelry trade association, sent a letter to Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert on Monday night urging him to strip controversial 'mining' provisions from the House budget reconciliation bill. The letter, signed by Jewelers of America President and CEO Matthew A. Runci, expressed grave concern that the mining provisions authored by House Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo (R-California) "would result in a massive giveaway of public land giveaway to corporations and private interests."
Tagged with: no dirty gold, jewelry retailers, congress
Groups Urge Ghana Government to Audit North American Mining Company
October 18, 2005
Accra, Heidelberg, and Washington DC: Today, EARTHWORKS, FIAN International, and the Wassa Association of Communities affected by Mining (WACAM) are calling on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Ghana to conduct an environmental audit of Bogoso Gold Limited's gold mining operations in Prestea in the Western Region of Ghana, and to renew the suspension of the mine until community concerns about environmental pollution and human rights abuses are addressed. Bogoso Gold Limited (BGL) is a subsidiary of US-Canadian gold mining company Golden Star Resources. Golden Star Resources is a member of the London-based World Gold Council, an international association of gold mining companies operating in 22 countries.
Tagged with: mining, gold, international, ghana
New Tests Show Returning Residents at Risk from Katrina's Toxic Sediments
October 14, 2005
NEW ORLEANS, LA. -- Flooding associated with Hurricane Katrina deposited a layer of sediment in many areas of south east Louisiana. On September 16, 2005, Subra Company was assisted by Altamont Environmental with sediment and surface water sampling in five residential areas in New Orleans, Chalmette and Meraux that were impacted by flood waters from Hurricane Katrina. The sampling was conducted to assess potential organic and inorganic contamination of those residential areas.
Tagged with: public health, toxics
No Dirty Gold Campaign Launches New Ad Campaign
No Dirty Gold campaign
October 11, 2005
WASHINGTON, DC -- This week, the No Dirty Gold campaign took out the first in a series of ads to be published in national publications. The ads call on jewelry firms, and other businesses that use gold, to insist the gold they buy--and sell--is produced in ways that do not harm communities, workers, and the environment. The first ad is running in National Jeweler magazine, a leading U.S. jewelry publication.
"Jewelry CEOs may not be driving the bulldozers at mines, but as the leading end-users of gold, they're in a unique position to help clean up irresponsible mining practices,' said Payal Sampat, EARTHWORKS' No Dirty Gold campaign director. Jewelry accounts for more than 80 percent of gold use each year.
Tagged with: no dirty gold, jewelry retailers, national jeweler
Fans Urge Alicia Keys to Say No to Dirty Gold Mining
September 27, 2005
Washington, DC - Thousands of music fans and college students from around the country are sending letters to singer-songwriter Alicia Keys who was featured this past summer in Vogue and Vanity Fair as part of a new jewelry advertising campaign launched by the World Gold Council and its member mining companies to boost gold consumption. Thus far, over 2,500 supporters have written to Keys' publicists and management team.
Tagged with:
Congressional Proposal Would Allow Mining Companies to Purchase Public Land Without Restriction
September 23, 2005
Washington, DC - House Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo (R-CA) has written draft legislation for the budget reconciliation bill that would alter the 1872 Mining Law and repeal a 10-year moratorium on the selling of public land to multi-national mining companies. Congress plans to start the budget reconciliation process this month.
If the patent moratorium is repealed, treasured places throughout the West could be permanently removed from America's system of public lands. As a result, those Americans who hunt, fish, hike, and recreate in these areas will be permanently denied the access they currently enjoy. The fate of rivers and streams running through these lands, providing water for agriculture and municipalities, will be left largely to mining companies to determine, as will the health of wildlife and game habitat.
Tagged with: 1872 mining law, congress, moratorium
ASARCO Bankruptcy To Leave U.S. Taxpayers With Billion Dollar Clean-Up Bill
August 10, 2005
Tagged with: mining, abandoned mines, taxpayers, bankruptcy
Corps Permit Undermine Clean Water Act
June 22, 2005
Juneau, Alaska - The Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) today issued a precedent-setting permit that will allow a mining company to dump 4.5 million tons of chemically-processed mine waste directly into Lower Slate Lake on the Tongass National Forest, effectively turning the freshwater lake into a dead zone. The permit clears the way for final approval of Coeur Alaska's proposed Kensington gold mine, whose facilities would stretch across the Berners Bay watershed, which is home to sea lions, humpback whales, four species of wild salmon, bald eagles, brown and black bears, and moose.
Tagged with: mining, epa, gold, alaska, clean water act
EPA Cites Gold Mines as Largest Source of Toxic Mercury Air Emissions in Nevada, Utah, Idaho
May 11, 2005
Washington, DC - The Environmental Protection Agency released the 2003 Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data today, which documents gold mines as the largest source of mercury air emission in the tri-state region of Utah, Idaho and Nevada. These toxic emissions are largely released by mines that use ore roasters to process the gold. Under this process, the mercury residing in the ore is released into the air when the ore is heated to extract the gold. Although these ore roasters are located in Nevada, air emissions from these mines can travel great distances, affecting a broad geographic area, including neighboring states Idaho and Utah.
The Cortez Gold Mine, owned by the Canadian company Placer Dome, is the largest source of mercury in the area, reporting a releasing 1,378 pounds into the air in 2003. Barrick's Goldstrike mine reports a release of 1,057 pounds.
Tagged with: mining, gold, toxics, mercury, tri
Communities Urge Gold Miner Newmont to Reform
No Dirty Gold campaign
April 27, 2005
Denver - Representatives from Ghana, Indonesia, Peru, Romania, and Nevada today called on Newmont Mining, the world's largest gold producer, to urgently reform its human rights and environmental practices at its global operations. Speaking at the company's annual shareholder meeting, representatives demanded that Newmont fully respect human rights, stop intimidation of farmers, community members and individuals critical of its operations, and stop dumping mine wastes into the ocean. They also called on the company to permanently cancel plans for new, open-pit mines on densely populated farmland in Romania, in a Ghanaian forest reserve, and on a mountain in Peru that is a source of community drinking water.
Tagged with: no dirty gold, newmont, western shoshone, grufides, wacam, wahli
Romanian Gold Mining Activist Wins Prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize
April 18, 2005
San Francisco, CA: Stephanie Roth, a mining activist in Romania, has been awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize. Considered the Nobel Prize for the Environment, the Goldman Environmental Prize is awarded each year to outstanding grassroots environmentalists from each of the six continental regions. Roth is this year's European winner. The award draws attention to the considerable environmental and human impacts of gold mining.
Tagged with: mining, international, romania, goldman prize
EPA Whistleblower, Experts Issue Warning on Hydraulic Fracturing
April 13, 2005
APRIL 13, 2005 - A widely-used oil and gas production technique is threatening drinking water supplies in many states and should be regulated to protect human health and property values, a panel of experts said today.
During a national teleconference discussion on "hydraulic fracturing" (also known as "fracking"), an Environmental Protection Agency whistle-blower joined municipal water managers, geochemists and private landowners from across the country in calling on Congress and the EPA to protect drinking water supplies from fracking. The technique has impacted drinking water supplies in at least three states.
Tagged with: fracking, epa, public health, congress
Groups Urge Arizona Congressional Delegation Not to Introduce Land Exchange Bill
April 12, 2005
PHOENIX --- Twenty-three state and national groups have sent a letter to the Arizona Congressional delegation urging them not to introduce a land exchange bill that would allow a foreign-owned mining company to mine under Oak Flat Campground, a popular recreation area near Phoenix. The groups argue that not only does this land exchange bill threaten an important recreation and cultural area, it also sets a chilling precedent for other areas currently withdrawn from mining due to their unique recreational, ecological or cultural values.
"We urge the Arizona delegation to keep public recreational and cultural areas such as Oak Flat protected for future generations," said Roger Featherstone of Earthworks.
Groups Call on Jewelry Industry to Combat Conflict Diamonds and Dirty Gold
March 4, 2005
London and Washington, DC: Today, Oxfam America, EARTHWORKS, and Global Witness are calling on jewelers to provide consumers with meaningful guarantees that the jewelry they buy is not tarnished with human rights abuses, environmental destruction, or conflict. The global jewelry industry is holding its annual meeting in Hong Kong from3-6 March 2005. Organized by the World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO), the meeting's theme this year is "Maintaining Consumer Confidence."
Tagged with: gold, no dirty gold, jewelry retailers, conflict minerals
VALENTINE’S GOLD JEWELRY SALES GENERATE 34 MILLION TONS OF MINE WASTE
No Dirty Gold campaign
February 11, 2005
WASHINGTON, DC --- Valentine's sales of gold jewelry in the U.S. will leave in their wake more than 34 million metric tons of waste worldwide, according to estimates from EARTHWORKS and Oxfam America, leaders of a major consumer campaign aimed at changing the way gold is produced and sold. (The estimates are based on gold sales in the first two weeks of February.) The "No Dirty Gold" campaign, which is celebrating its first anniversary this week, has targeted gold sales because gold mining is arguably the dirtiest industry in the world---and most of the gold mined worldwide is used for jewelry.
"Gold loses its luster when it is produced at the expense of healthy communities, clean water and human rights," said Payal Sampat, International Campaign Director with EARTHWORKS. "Retailers and consumers are saying this price is too high."
Tagged with: no dirty gold, jewelry retailers, mining waste, valentines day
Valentine's Gold Jewelry Sales Generate 34 Million Tons of Mine Waste
February 11, 2005
WASHINGTON, DC --- Valentine's sales of gold jewelry in the U.S. will leave in their wake more than 34 million metric tons of waste worldwide, according to estimates from EARTHWORKS and Oxfam America, leaders of a major consumer campaign aimed at changing the way gold is produced and sold. (The estimates are based on gold sales in the first two weeks of February.) The "No Dirty Gold" campaign, which is celebrating its first anniversary this week, has targeted gold sales because gold mining is arguably the dirtiest industry in the world---and most of the gold mined worldwide is used for jewelry.
Tagged with: mining, gold, no dirty gold, jewelry retailers
Expert Study Shows Buyat Bay, Indonesia, Polluted; Newmont at Center of Public Health Controversy
November 10, 2004
Washington, DC - An Indonesian government-convened panel concluded its studies this week showing that sediment and fish in Buyat Bay, Indonesia, are contaminated with mercury and arsenic at levels that pose a human health risk. Buyat Bay is the site of Newmont Mining Corporation's Minahasa Raya gold mine, which closed down in August 2004.
The panel was convened by the Indonesian government following allegations that U.S.-based Newmont's gold mine had polluted Buyat Bay and harmed human health. The panel consists of experts drawn from Indonesian government agencies, academia, non-governmental organizations, and technical consultants. Its findings were officially accepted by the Indonesian Environment Minister on Monday.
Tagged with: mining, gold, public health, newmont, international, mercury
YALE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS LOBBY CLASS RING RETAILERS, CAMPAIGN AROUND ANNUAL SALES, CITING GOLD INDUSTRY'S EGREGIOUS PRACTICES
No Dirty Gold campaign
October 22, 2004
Starting this week, university students on a number of college campuses will take action against class ring retail giants Jostens, American Achievement Corporation (AAC) and Herff-Jones.
For years, college students have raised America's public consciousness through social activism: anti-war marches, apartheid sit-ins, sweatshop protests. Now, students have embraced a new cause. Yale students are part of a larger campaign called No Dirty Gold, an international effort to educate consumers about the harmful impacts of gold mining and to build consumer support for industry reforms.
Tagged with: no dirty gold, jewelry retailers, class rings, american achievement corporation, jostens, yale, herff-jones
Senate Attempts to Thwart Bush Mining Fee Increase
September 16, 2004
Washington, DC - The FY2005 Interior Appropriations bill, introduced yesterday by Interior Subcommittee Chair Conrad Burns (R-MT), includes a provision that would delay the increase in the claim maintenance fee that mining companies must pay to maintain an exclusive option to mine on public land.
The fee increase, which was written into rule by the Bush Administration this past July, would raise the fee from $100 to $125 per year. This increase was the first attempt to raise the fee since its original authorization by Congress in 1993. The claim fee, along with a $25 fee to initially stake a mining claim, are the only payment to the public for mining on public lands and are intended to cover administrative costs rather than act as a fair payment to the public. The public does not receive a royalty for the $1 billion in minerals extracted from public lands each year.
Tagged with: mining, public lands, congress, bush
What Do Ted Turner, Bush Appointee John Turner, and EARTHWORKS Have in Common?
September 8, 2004
Washington, D.C. - Earthworks will be presented with the Award of Achievement by the Natural Resources Council of America for the best environmental media campaign of the year for its "No Dirty Gold" campaign. The awards ceremony will be held at the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C. tonight. Other award winners include Ted Turner who will be presented with the Award of Honor for his lifetime contributions to conservation, and John Turner, a member of both Bush Administrations, who will receive the Award for Public Service.
Tagged with: mining, gold, no dirty gold
Mining Claim Fee Increases by $25
July 2, 2004
Washington, DC- Yesterday, the Department of the Interior announced an increase in the fee that mining companies must pay to maintain an exclusive option to mine a claim on public land - from $100 per claim per year to $125 per year. This fee, along with a $25 fee to initially stake a mining claim, are the only return the public receives for the $1 billion dollars in minerals extracted from public lands each year.
Tagged with: mining, public lands, interior department
Mining Industry Hides Toxic Releases
June 23, 2004
WASHINGTON, DC -- Multinational companies that mine metals and minerals such as gold, silver and copper - produce more toxic waste than any other industry in the country, according to the EPA's annual Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) released today.
According to the TRI, 1.3 billion pounds of toxics were released by hardrock mines in 2002 - 27% of all toxics released by U.S. industry overall. This includes 384 million pounds of arsenic, 348 million pounds of lead and 4.7 million pounds of mercury.
Tagged with: mining, gold, toxics, mercury, tri
Public Lands Giveaway Revealed by New Website
May 10, 2004
Washington, DC - On the 132nd anniversary of the signing of the 1872 Mining Law, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) has released a new investigative website, Who Owns the West? detailing widespread mining industry control of public lands. The interactive website reveals that one out of every 11 acres of public land is open to the multinational mining industry. It also sheds new light on a massive taxpayer rip-off and giveaway of millions of acres of public lands to private corporations and individuals for rock-bottom prices - in some cases as little as 84 cents an acre.
Tagged with: 1872 mining law, public lands
CONSUMER CAMPAIGN SAYS, "IF YOU LOVE MOM, DO SOMETHING THAT WILL MAKE HER PROUD THIS MOTHER'S DAY"
No Dirty Gold campaign, WACAM, Western Shoshone Defense Project
May 5, 2004
Washington, DC -- This Mother's Day, leaders of the No Dirty Gold consumer campaign are calling on husbands, sons, and daughters to protect mothers around the world from being harmed by destructive gold mining practices. Mother's Day is the second largest gold jewelry- giving holiday of the year after the Christmas season.
"Many of our mothers have been impoverished and can no longer feed their children because mining operations have taken over their farmland and contaminated their drinking water supplies," said Hannah Owusu-Koranteng of the Wassa region in Ghana, where families have suffered in the wake of a cyanide spill from a gold mine in 2001. "The human cost of gold mining is simply too high."
Tagged with: no dirty gold, jewelry retailers, indigenous, jewelry, mothers day
Communities Hurt by Newmont Seek Compensation
April 28, 2004
Denver, Colorado, 4/28 -- Shareholders gathering today for Newmont Mining Corp.'s annual meeting will be met by rosy financial reports, but for thousands of people living near its gold mines in Indonesia, Peru, and Nevada, living conditions continue to deteriorate. Critics charge the company's operations have polluted drinking water, contaminated fisheries and farmland, and led to serious health problems, which the multi-billion-dollar company has refused to acknowledge to its shareholders as a significant financial and social liability.
Tagged with: mining, gold, no dirty gold, newmont, international
EARTHWORKS Launches Earthworks@HOME
April 21, 2004
Washington, DC, 4/21 -- Coinciding with the 34th annual Earth Day Celebration this week, EARTHWORKS today announced a new tool to aid consumers and communities in making responsible choices at home that will help protect the environment and communities around the world from the impacts of mining, drilling, and digging.
Earthworks@HOME will provide information and practical suggestions and tips that will help consumers make informed choices about everything from jewelry to cell phones. The focus will be on steps that people can take in their everyday lives to tread more lightly on the earth's surface -- conserving resources, producing less waste, and protecting communities.
Tagged with: mining, oil and gas
Tiffany & Co. Stakes Bold Position on Responsible Mining
March 24, 2004
WASHINGTON, DC Today, Tiffany & Co., one of the leading jewelry companies in the world, issued a call for protection of an important wilderness area threatened by a silver mine as well as reform of the outdated U.S. mining law regulating the industry supplying it with much of the gold, silver and platinum for its jewelry.
The jewelry company made its statement in an open letter to the Forest Service in today's Washington Post. Tiffany & Co. states that the "opponents fears are justified" in regard to the controversial Rock Creek silver and copper mine in a pristine Wilderness Area in Montana, a poster child example of why the 1872 Mining Law badly needs updating. This is the first time that a major jewelry company has taken such a highly visible stance calling for reforms to the main U.S. law regulating mining, and could be an early sign of fears of consumer backlash from the destructive impacts of mining on the part of retailers of jewelry and high-tech products that use gold, silver and other metals.
Tagged with: gold, no dirty gold, jewelry retailers, montana, rock creek mine, miningwatch canada, tiffany and co
Mineral Policy Center Becomes EARTHWORKS
March 1, 2004
Washington, DC -- Today Mineral Policy Center announced that it has changed its name to EARTHWORKS (www.earthworksaction.org).
Tagged with: media
No Dirty Gold Campaign Launch
February 11, 2004
WASHINGTON, DC -- EARTHWORKS/Mineral Policy Center and Oxfam America today announced the launch of No Dirty Gold, a consumer campaign intended to shake up the gold industry and change the way gold is mined, bought and sold. The two organizations have targeted the gold jewelry market for the major consumer campaign, because gold mining is arguably the dirtiest industry operating in the U.S. and in many parts of the world.
"Gold doesn't seem so shiny when you consider the colossal damage gold mining inflicts," said Payal Sampat, International Campaign Director with EARTHWORKS. "We're asking consumers to consider the real cost of gold, and we're enlisting their help to put an end to mining practices that endanger people and ecosystems."
Tagged with: gold, no dirty gold, jewelry retailers
White Mountains rec area not a mining pit
FAIRBANKS — Could the White Mountains National Recreation Area become a mining district? The Bureau of Land Management is considering a management alternative that could make this a reality. On March 5, I attended BLM’s public meeting at the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center to listen and voice my concerns about potential mining in the White Mountains NRA. I wasn’t the only one.
Tagged with: mining, alaska, blm
Duke study finds methane gas in well water near fracking sites
Read this article on the publishing site
Methane levels in private water wells are, on average, 17 times higher in wells that are within 1,000 feet of a natural gas drilling site.
The researchers sampled the water from 68 wells in northeastern Pennsylvania and New York, and found methane in 85 percent of the wells.
When they fingerprinted the methane itself — comparing the chemistry of the methane in the water wells with that of the gas from natural gas wells in the region — “the signatures matched,” said Robert B. Jackson, Nicholas Professor of Global Environmental Change at Duke, one of the study’s authors.
Tagged with: fracking, hydraulic fracturing, drinking water, water contamination, methane, national academy of sciences
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