NewsWhore
09-23-2010, 11:50 AM
The coordinator of the state university UASD environmental commission, Luis Carvajal said that Barrick Gold is promoting "four capital lies," as reported in 7dias.com.do
He said that the mining company is spreading false information on their operations in the country. "Barrick Gold is forging their data, lying about their processes and lacks environmental permits," said the ecologist. He said that the company is running a public relations campaign based on four "capital lies". These are: Total investment, number of jobs, environmental guarantees and international prestige. He said the company investment is US$900 million and not US$3.5 billion as the company reports. He says the contract establishes that the investment is US$2.7 billion, while in fact they are not investing more than US$900 million.
He said that the contract includes a clause that conditions the participation of the government in net profits to when the investment is paid for and a yield of more than 10% is obtained, as well as the payment of all debts.
As reported, he says: "Worse is that Barrick took on loans payable in gold, at the price of the moment when the loans were contracted, which impedes the country from benefiting, even indirectly, from the contract with the increases in the price of gold in international markets." He said it was a great paradox that for purposes of profit the increase in the price of gold generates losses in the yield because the company's financial commitments have to be paid in gold.
"The tragedy and comedy of this transaction by the PLD government is that as the guarantee of the loans of Barrick is the mine itself, that guarantees the yield for the state, the resources with which the mine will operate is the country's money," he explains.
He said the firm would not create more than 4,000 jobs, "despite the company talking about 10,000 in the media." He said that in the installation, construction and infrastructure preparation phase, some 3,000 workers could be employed, plus 2,000 temps. "After the mining and production processes start, the maximum number of jobs will not be more than 850 including laborers, office and technical workers," he said.
According to Carvajal, the productive processes (cattle ranching, farming, aquaculture, fishing and tourism) will be displaced by the mining even when they generate more jobs. "Only the direct displacements of the communities will be 3,000 and the threat to the variation of the quality of the waters will affect the lives of more than 20,000 families that live off farming, cattle ranching or fishing," he said.
The UASD Environmental Commission believes that Barrick Gold and the government are in violation of Law 64-2000 on Environment and Natural Resources with the installation and physical transformation processes without having presented an Environmental Impact Study and without a Plan for Environmental Management, and without the environmental license established by the country's law, standards and environmental procedures.
Carvajal said that the firm is one of the international mining firms with the worst image on the planet. He called on ecological movements to back the judicial recourse presented by youth groups that will be heard at the Disputes and Administrative Chamber today.
http://7dias.com.do/app/article.aspx?id=83677
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#13)
He said that the mining company is spreading false information on their operations in the country. "Barrick Gold is forging their data, lying about their processes and lacks environmental permits," said the ecologist. He said that the company is running a public relations campaign based on four "capital lies". These are: Total investment, number of jobs, environmental guarantees and international prestige. He said the company investment is US$900 million and not US$3.5 billion as the company reports. He says the contract establishes that the investment is US$2.7 billion, while in fact they are not investing more than US$900 million.
He said that the contract includes a clause that conditions the participation of the government in net profits to when the investment is paid for and a yield of more than 10% is obtained, as well as the payment of all debts.
As reported, he says: "Worse is that Barrick took on loans payable in gold, at the price of the moment when the loans were contracted, which impedes the country from benefiting, even indirectly, from the contract with the increases in the price of gold in international markets." He said it was a great paradox that for purposes of profit the increase in the price of gold generates losses in the yield because the company's financial commitments have to be paid in gold.
"The tragedy and comedy of this transaction by the PLD government is that as the guarantee of the loans of Barrick is the mine itself, that guarantees the yield for the state, the resources with which the mine will operate is the country's money," he explains.
He said the firm would not create more than 4,000 jobs, "despite the company talking about 10,000 in the media." He said that in the installation, construction and infrastructure preparation phase, some 3,000 workers could be employed, plus 2,000 temps. "After the mining and production processes start, the maximum number of jobs will not be more than 850 including laborers, office and technical workers," he said.
According to Carvajal, the productive processes (cattle ranching, farming, aquaculture, fishing and tourism) will be displaced by the mining even when they generate more jobs. "Only the direct displacements of the communities will be 3,000 and the threat to the variation of the quality of the waters will affect the lives of more than 20,000 families that live off farming, cattle ranching or fishing," he said.
The UASD Environmental Commission believes that Barrick Gold and the government are in violation of Law 64-2000 on Environment and Natural Resources with the installation and physical transformation processes without having presented an Environmental Impact Study and without a Plan for Environmental Management, and without the environmental license established by the country's law, standards and environmental procedures.
Carvajal said that the firm is one of the international mining firms with the worst image on the planet. He called on ecological movements to back the judicial recourse presented by youth groups that will be heard at the Disputes and Administrative Chamber today.
http://7dias.com.do/app/article.aspx?id=83677
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#13)