Thirst for Illegal Treasure. Gold Mining In Venezuela - Environmental Disaster.

So let's assume we found the lost city of El Dorado, at least the one marked on the map of Bolivar State. Here is the next part of the story about the golden region of Venezuela.

The Venezuelan Gran Sabana is one of the most ancient places on Earth and one of the last wild areas. Set in a world rich in natural wonders and resources, this cultural and ecological heritage is on the edge of being irreversibly transformed or destroyed. One of the oldest geological formations on the continent, south of Venezuela’s Orinoco River in the Guiana Highlands, is a strategic development zone.

View of the tepuis, Kukenan and Roraima, in the Gran Sabana, User: Paolo Costa Baldi Licence:CC BY-SA 3.0

Map of the municipality El Callao, Bolívar, Source: Shadowxfox Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0

When the government took possession of the gold mines and two foreign companies, Crystallex and Gold Reserve assets were seized, the exploitation and production fell drastically. As a part of the later settlement, to mine in Brisas and Las Cristinas gold mines, another joint venture was formed.

Over time all foreign mining investors have quickly become stuck in a cycle of political or legal battles and every deal to obtain access to these neighbouring sites led ultimately to a failure.

Visualised by Hugo Chavez in 2011 a huge mining project to extract and exploit this rich in gold area was resumed by his successor Nicolas Maduro. The president approved the Mining Development Plan and the Orinoco Mining Arc was opened for the exploitation, fully underway in 2016. The ecosystem of global interest covers 12 percent of the national territory and is part of the Amazon River basin.

Map of the Orinoco Mining Arc, Source: Ecomineria Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0

The idea of this strategic development zone was to reduce illegal mining by giving work to Venezuelan artisanal miners and enter partnerships with scores of national and transnational firms while maintaining the national sovereignty of the area.

Income to the Central Bank of Venezuela of 749 kilograms of gold from the Orinoco Mining Arc on November 18, 2017, Source: YVKE Mundial Radio Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0

Unfortunately, much of the mining lacked state regulation. The corruption and pervasive confusion have left Venezuela’s gold mining industry in complete chaos. The small-scale mining has remained in the hands of organized crime groups usually under the supervision of Venezuela’s army. Throughout the state prison mafias commanded by “pranes” control the mines and the corrupted army guards guide the entrance to the deposits by collecting bribes.

Gold in the pan, User: Mike Beauregard Licence:CC BY 2.0

There are estimated 100,000 small-scale miners working at illegal gold mines, these men seek their fortunes with quite archaic techniques such the use of tin pans, dynamite and wooden sluices. In towns in the south of the Bolivar state, gold is used as currency.

For Sale - 55 Grams, Photo: @highonthehog

Hydraulic mining for gold, Henry Sandham 1842–1910, Source: Howcheng Licence: Public Domain

Dredge and Dredging, Source: Project Gutenberg Licence: Public Domain

Large scale mines are owned by companies who will stay at the mining site until all of the mineral deposits in that area have been acquired. These companies may employ thousands of workers from the community. Large machinery is used to dig gold from the soil and mercury is used to amalgamate the gold deposits. Small-scale mining consists of 4 to 5 men who travel around looking for gold. Land and River dredging are the two most popular methods used by small-scale miners. Land dredging is done by digging a hole into the soil and then using a high-pressure water source to expose the gold. This water runs off into different locations usually making the perfect breeding grounds for mosquitoes carrying malaria. River dredging consists of sucking up the ground beneath the river into pipes, which then filter out the gold particles. The displaced ground is then released into different areas of the river. Gold Mining And Its Effects On The Amazon And Its Inhabitants

Huge mining zone of Orinoco Arch scheme allows for open-pit mining in territories renowned for its indigenous communities and promotes forms of resource extraction that severely damages the environment.

Indian Pemón in the Gran Sabana, Source: Alejandro afc Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0

Gold heap leaching, Source: Metallos~commonswiki Licence: Public Domain

Pollution gets worse in the area as small-scale artisanal miners use mercury- bio-accumulative heavy metal, to extract the gold from the sediment. Poorly regulated gold mining, hydraulic ground erosion and deforestation left a tenth of the area devastated, and the sediments of the most important river systems contaminated.

On the way, Photo: @highonthehog

Without the clear rules for investors, there is a huge risk in opening the area for the multinational mining corporations, which would cause further environmental destruction through the use of large-scale open pit cyanide heap leach technology to extract the deep underground reserves and setting up large tailings dams containing water contaminated with cyanide.

Element mercury (Hg), liquid form, User: Bionerd Licence: CC BY 3.0

In the developed world mercury was replaced by alternative methods or products, here it is still used to purify gold from ore in a process called amalgamation.

Gold amalgamation is one of the oldest gold extraction methods. Mercury added to gold and silver ores creates an amalgam by contact with such metals. An amalgam is an extremely malleable metallic state that is not an alloy and the dissolved metals can be separated from the mercury by evaporating the amalgam. Myths And Realities In Artisanal Gold Mining Mercury Contamination

With a spare petrol, Photo: @highonthehog

Venezuela is a country in crisis, left with a mountain of debt with no means of repayment. Entangled in the corruption and misdirection, production from the largest gold deposit in the country has declined and its mining initiative continues to generate controversy. Its under-tapped potential is the only thing helping the country pay its bills right now.

Previous part here: The Myth Or Reality? El Dorado And The Bloody Grab for Gold in Venezuela

References

Photos: @highonthehog Images: sources linked below

Gustavo Angeloci Santos, Myths And Realities In Artisanal Gold Mining Mercury Contamination, The University Of British Columbia (Vancouver), 2013
Juan Friede, Geographical Ideas And The Conquest Of Venezuela, The Americas, Vol. 16, No. 2 Pp. 145-159, Cambridge University Press, 1959
U.S. Geological Survey And Corporacion Venezolana De Guayana, Tecnica Minera, C.A., Geology And Mineral Resource Assessment Of The Venezuelan Guayana Shield United States Government Printing Office, Washington, 1993
Helmut Waszkis, Mining in the Americas: Stories and History, Woodhead Publishing Limited, 1993