Latest update April 19th, 2024 12:59 AM
Aug 01, 2009 News
Norman McLean seeks to end ‘bad mouthing’ of miners
Gold miners in Guyana are seeking to surpass the target and produce more than 260,000 ounces of gold this year, new President of the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association, Norman McLean has said.
Having served 18 years in the Association, McLean said the industry is on the move and among his priorities is to take away the “bad rap” mining has suffered over the years. He said that at the end of June, 130,220 ounces of gold had been declared, which is just on target for the first half of the year.
But when he spoke just after his election to office, it was the miners he sought to defend against the “bad mouthing” they have suffered over the years.
Gold miners from the very golden days have had a “bad rap” of squandering money and earnings based on the belief “that if we do so, the Gods will smile on us and we would continue to find gold from Mother Earth.”
The latest “bad mouthing” is that miners are poisoning the environment with mercury and contributing to the destruction of forests, he said.
McLean dismissed both of these allegations as “fallacious” and said Guyanese miners have always used the best means at their disposal to mine and produce gold. However, he acknowledged that there are “mavericks” guilty of these practices and said they will have to be rooted out.
“Nevertheless, we are playing a most meaningful role in our economy and contributing at the same time to sustainability,” McLean said at a gathering of miners at Hotel Tower, Georgetown.
He said that statements against the miners are nothing new and the ministers have used them because their own health is at stake, as well as that of the communities around which they mine.
According to McLean, miners know the ills of mercury poisoning and as a result, the Gold and Diamond Miners Association has been working with a number of organizations, including the Canadian International Development Agency and the World Wildlife Fund on trials to improve production and standards.
“We are not reckless and will not destroy our environment and livelihood. It is not production at any cost but mining with the environment in mind,” McLean declared. Towards this end, the Association has employed two environmental officers who are working in the hinterland.
Referring to the contribution of the mining sector to the local economy, McLean said that in 2008 an estimated 25 per cent of export earnings came from gold mining alone.
After the closure of Omai Gold Mines in 2005, McLean said that the Association and its miners took up the challenge and dramatically improved the production and declaration of gold in the years that followed.
McLean said that the production records show a stellar performance by miners, which has contributed more than 20 per cent of the national Gross Domestic Product, amounting to over US$20 million.
From 2005 to June 2009 a total of 990,440 ounces of gold was declared.
For the future, McLean said the Association will have to work to counter the misconceptions surrounding gold mining, since the sector makes a significant contribution to the economy and supports families of about 100,000 Guyanese.
Please share this to every Guyanese including your house cats.
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