The Latin American gold mineHow the Omai case could change the dynamics of cross-border businessThe Canadian mining industry has shown a distinct preference for doing business in Latin America. Between 1993 and 1995, the number of mineral properties held by Canadian mining companies more than doubled. By the end of 1995, there were over 200 Canadian mining companies active in South America, 100 in Mexico, and 75 in Central America and the Caribbean. If Recherches Internationales Québec is successful in its case against Cambior, it won't affect only those mining companies that may have already caused environmental damage. The mere possibility of a lawsuit means that companies will think twice before moving ahead with any environmentally risky projects and may compel them to take increased precautions. Meanwhile, cases such as Omai are also changing the traditional role of environmental groups. According to François Tanguay of Greenpeace Quebec, legal issues are taking up more and more of his organization's time and money. "It has become hard to tell whether we do environmental work or legal, human rights-type work," he says. Here's a quick look at some Canadian companies currently operating in Latin America, and the controversies emerging with local populations: Company: Greenstone, Toronto ON Location: La Libertad, Nicaragua Operation: Gold mining La Libertad is a community of 4,500 people with a history of small-scale gold mining by local inhabitants. In 1994, Greenstone purchased 75 per cent of the sub-soil exploration and excavation rights to an area of 156.5 square kilometres and brought in heavy machinery capable of extracting 200 tonnes of dirt per day. The result is that many local miners are being squeezed off the land. According to local reports, during heavy rainfalls cyanide effluent from the Greenstone operation seeps into local rivers and as many as 43 cows have died from drinking contaminated water. Local miners have organized into a cooperative and have taken their concerns to the Environment Commission of Nicaragua's National Assembly. Company: Focal, Toronto ON Location: Santo Domingo, Nicaragua Operation: Gold mining Focal arrived in Santo Domingo one year ago, seeking permission from the local municipal council to explore the surrounding area. Two months later, without informing the council, Focal signed an agreement with the small miners' cooperative which included not only exploration but also exploitation rights. The Santo Domingo council has sought clarification on the legal issues surrounding this agreement from the National Assembly and the Environment Commission. Juan Domingo Oporta, secretary of the municipal council, was quoted as saying, "I believe that every country needs to orient its companies to get rid of this spirit of conqueror, this spirit of plundering, of coming into our communities only to take away." Without a proper environmental assessment, Oporta says, locals are left to tally damages by counting dead cows. Company: Tiomin Resources, Toronto ON Location: Chiriqui province, Western Panama Operation: Copper mining Through its Panamanian subsidiary, PanaCobre SA, Tiomin secured permission to explore Chiriqui province last March. Mining is slated to begin once an environmental assessment is completed, but local inhabitants continue to raise objections to the operation. The Panamanian government has created a comarca, or reserve, which gives the indigenous people a greater degree of control over investments and operations in the area. But according to Gavin Andrews, a local filmmaker who made a documentary on the Chiriqui story last year, PanaCobre is exempt from the terms of the comarca. Last fall, locals stepped up their opposition by occupying universities and government offices to draw attention to their situation. --Philip Preville Sources: Canadian Minerals Yearbook, 1995; International Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development, Montreal; The Globe and Mail |