LIMA (AFP) — Peru scrambled Saturday to prevent potential environmental disaster, after a dump for a major ore mining operation showed signs of a rupture that could lead to contamination of the local water supply.
The Lima government on Friday declared a state of emergency after the dump, located at Coricancha mine and owned and operated by Gold Hawk Resources Inc., showed signs of ground displacement and fragility.
The government warned that by-products from the mining of thousands of tons of lead, zinc, arsenic and other metals and minerals could escape into and pollute the Rimac River, this city's main source of water.
Around one third of Peruvians live in and around Lima, a coastal city with a population of between six and seven million people ...
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5imrMAlTPJ1aI2sOvXZyll25uREjQPeru Orders Canada's Gold Hawk to Relocate Some Mine Operations
By Alex Emery
July 18 (Bloomberg) -- Canadian miner Gold Hawk Resources Inc. said Peru's government ordered the company to relocate some facilities at its gold and silver mine in the central Andes because of imminent risk of landslides.
The Peruvian Cabinet chief's office declared a state of emergency at the Tamboraque Hill area, where the Coricancha mine has tailings facilities, Vancouver-based Gold Hawk said today in a statement distributed by Marketwire. The 1,690-hectare (4,174- acre) concession produced 17,800 ounces of gold and 608,000 ounces of silver last year, according to the company's Web site.
``We believe this Decree will expedite the required authorizations to implement measures that will minimize the risks to people, the environment and property,'' Gold Hawk Chief Executive Officer Kevin Drover said in the statement.
Gold Hawk started up the mine last year, Peru's fourth new gold mine in three years, a period in which gold prices have doubled. Barrick Gold Corp., Gold Fields Ltd., and Minera IRL Ltd., have also built gold mines since 2005 in Peru, the world's fifth-largest gold producer.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601082&sid=a7una9dspncE&refer=canada