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What Does It Take to Cooperate? Transboundary Water Management Around the World
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Water is the foundation of human society and will become even more critical as population growth, development, and climate change put pressure on already-shrinking water resources in the years ahead. But will this scarcity fuel conflict between countries with shared waters, as some have predicted, or will it create more impetus for cooperation?
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Wilson Center Premieres ‘Healthy People, Healthy Environment’ and ‘Transcending Boundaries’ at Environmental Film Festival
›Environmental security and international development aren’t typical movie-going fare, but at the 2013 DC Environmental Film Festival, ECSP premiered two short documentaries with unique environmental stories: Healthy People, Healthy Environment: Integrated Development in Tanzania shows how improving health services and environmental conservation can empower coastal communities in Africa; and Transcending Boundaries: Perspectives from the Central Albertine Rift Transfrontier Protected Area Network explores the opportunities for “peace parks” along the shared borders of Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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Nora Hawkins and Laura Johnson, State of the Planet
New Report on Effects of Environmental Indicators and Indices on Policymaking
›April 15, 2013 // By Wilson Center StaffThe original version of this article, by Nora Hawkins and Laura Johnson, appeared on State of the Planet.
As creators of the Environmental Performance Index (EPI), we are often asked if the EPI has measurable impacts on environmental decision-making. The short answer is yes; from promoting re-evaluation of air pollution policy in South Korea to inspiring the creation of seafood sustainability indicators in North America, the EPI has tangible influences on environmental actions throughout the world.
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Cleo Paskal and Uttam Sinha on the Geopolitical Implications of Climate Change for India and China
›India and China – “the two most important countries going forward in this century” – will both experience domestic concerns as a result of environmental change, but they are responding very differently, said Cleo Paskal, an associate fellow at Chatham House, in an interview with the Environment, Conflict, and Cooperation (ECC) Platform.
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Ruth Greenspan Bell, Bloomberg News
Global Warming Experts Should Think More About the Cold War
›January 2, 2013 // By Wilson Center Staff
The original version of this article, by Ruth Greenspan Bell, appeared on Bloomberg News.
Every year the United Nations convenes diplomats from more than 190 nations to negotiate a climate change treaty, and in many years negotiators go home with little more than the promise of another annual meeting.
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Beyond Carbon Credits: TIST Combines Reforestation, Health, and Livelihood Efforts
›Carbon offsets have fallen in and out of favor since they were established with the Kyoto Protocol in 1997. Critics say they allow wealthy organizations to placate consumers and claim their products are “green” without making any real, lasting changes. But, if the scheme works properly, some action is supposed to be taken somewhere, so what is it like at one of these credit-producing organizations?
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World Bank Issues Dire Warning About “Four Degree World”
›December 10, 2012 // By Carolyn LamereWithout decisive action, global temperatures could rise by at least four degrees Celsius (seven degrees Fahrenheit) by the end of the century. A new World Bank report says that such a world would be “so different from the current one” that it would be difficult to even anticipate the challenges we would face.
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Artisanal Gold Mining Threatens Riverine Communities in Guyana
›August 14, 2012 // By Keenan Dillard“Sometimes we make sure that we catch enough rainwater to use or we would have to search out the creeks to for water clean enough to drink,” said Guyanese villager Fabian George in a June interview with the United Nations University. The negative effects of a mining boom fueled by surging gold prices have become so widespread in the small South American country, which is about the size of Idaho, that the government has temporarily stopped issuing new gold and diamond mining permits.
The ban, which was announced on July 6 and is still in effect, will last until officials are able to complete a review “of the current management/oversight arrangement of river and tributary mining.” A statement released by the Guyanese Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment explained that “damage caused by increasingly irresponsible mining in Guyana’s rivers and tributaries,” has been a cause of major concern for citizens who depend on them to survive.
Guyana, a former colony of both the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, has a population that is predominantly split between people of African and East Indian descent who were recruited as indentured servants for the tea industry during the 19th century. Amerindians – indigenous Guyanese people – made up just nine percent of the population, as of the most recent census in 2002. A vast majority of Guyanese (71.5 percent) live in rural villages, most of which are located near the coastline. The remaining population resides in the capital, Georgetown, or one of four other urban centers.
While mining is responsible for just nine percent of the country’s GDP, it accounts for almost 60 percent of exports. Gold, bauxite (the precursor to aluminum), and diamonds are extracted and exported to countries including the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. In 2011 Guyana produced 363,000 ounces of gold, which represents a 23 percent increase since 2009 and can be attributed “to consistently active mining by small- and medium-scale miners that benefited from the continued increase in gold prices on the international market,” according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The Communities and Small Mining Initiative reports that more than 15 percent of Guyanese citizens economically depend on small-scale mining to support themselves.
Dredging the Jungle
These small-scale operations, also known as artisanal mines, generally employ rudimentary methods to extract and process minerals, as opposed to large scale industrial operations. As of 2011 there were less than 10 industrial-scale companies with any sort of presence in Guyana, while the number of licensed artisanal miners is more than 14,000, according to the government. Although the latter usually consists of just a few workers, they are also incredibly environmentally destructive.
The methods used most by artisanal miners in Guyana begin in one of two ways, according to the Blacksmith Institute: either large water hoses are used to quickly erode a plot of land or barges are used to dredge up sediment from the bottom of a river. Then, they “combine mercury with gold-laden silt to form a hardened amalgam that has picked up most of the gold metal from the silt. The amalgam is later heated with blow torches or over an open flame to evaporate the mercury, leaving small gold pieces.”
The environmental impacts of artisanal mining in Guyana are well-documented and include “drastic increases in the sediment content of river water, increased levels of mercury in river water, creation of artificial sandbars in rivers, deforestation and degradation of land fertility, and mosquito infestation and malaria,” according to a Harvard Human Rights Program study.
A report issued by the Guyanese Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment last month noted that current environmental problems associated with mining operations include, “widening of the river channel[s] and weakening of soil at river banks resulting in toppling of trees into the river course, blockages and changes to the main river channels resulting in un-navigable channels in the dry seasons.” High levels of turbidity, which is a measure of water clarity, have resulted in the deaths of some fish species that serve as a primary food source for riverine Guyanese communities.
The health of Guyanese rivers and streams is of particular concern to the Amerindians who make up the majority of the population in Guyana’s hinterlands where most artisanal mining occurs. The Harvard Human Rights Program report points out that indigenous people, most of whom survive on subsistence agriculture, are disproportionately affected due to their dependence on waterways for food, transportation, communication, and sanitation.
Adapting to a “Changing World”
Over the past few months the environmental, social, and health effects caused by gold mining in Guyana has become serious enough to warrant a temporary governmental halt to the issuance of any new licenses. In the meantime, scientists employed by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission are attempting to find a viable alternative to using mercury – the most damaging practice of artisanal miners – amid increasing pressure from the international community. In addition to polluting waterways and contaminating fish, mercury releases highly toxic vapors when it is burned away from gold, which can damage both internal organs and unborn children.
Damages from the run-away mining sector aren’t limited to the environment. The Amerindian Peoples’ Association in Guyana blames increases in prostitution, drug trafficking, and human trafficking on the country’s gold rush. According to the UN, “interior police investigated nearly 50 bush murders last year, about 40 more than normal, many from fights over gold and women or from drunken rum sprees by miners on time off.” Unlicensed mines and illegal aliens who cross the border from Brazil, compounded with a large smuggling operation that bypasses Guyanese gold taxes via Suriname, have left the government struggling to “enforce regulations, hire enough trained jungle mines inspectors, qualified geologists and other personnel to keep pace, and generally maintain order,” according to the UN.
On July 28, the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission issued a statement regarding the future of mining, and stressed the need to create a “holistic plan to have the industry adapt to a changing world.” For now it seems that complaints from Amerindian groups and other Guyanese citizens are the driving force in affecting change within the country, but opposition from interest groups such as the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association is intense. The government has acknowledged international pressure too as a factor in its decision to suspend new permits and recently began a partnership with the United Nations Development Programme to develop a natural resource management plan. It remains to be seen exactly what measures will be taken to address the serious problems facing the Guyanese people as a result of gold mining, but given the strong economic imperative for artisanal miners and the severity of environmental and human health effects, action must be taken soon.
Keenan Dillard is a cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point and an intern with the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Environmental Change and Security Program.
Sources: Amerindian Peoples Association, Blacksmith Institute, Bureau of Statistics (Guyana), Center for International Forestry Research, Central Intelligence Agency, Communities and Small-Scale Mining, The Daily Herald, Demerara Waves, Environmental Protection Agency, Guyana News and Information, Harvard Law School, Inter Press Service, Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment (Guyana), National Communications Network (Guyana), Stabroek News, United Nations, U.S. Geological Survey, USAID.
Photo Credit: “Gold Mine (Mahdia, Guyana),” courtesy of flickr user caribbeanfreephoto (Georgia Popplewell).
Showing posts from category international environmental governance.
