Mongolian forest land was destroyed by mine sites - (Photo: Nationalgeographic)
On November 20, the Ardyn Erkh newspaper of Mongolia reported that the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy had suspended 1,800 out of a total of 4,000 mining licenses nationwide for at least a year. In addition, 254 gold mining licenses will also be canceled.
The Law on Protection of Water and Forests, passed in July 2009, prohibits mining activities in river basins and forests. Recently, the Mongolian government has conducted many surveys to determine which mining projects violate the law. Resource Minister Dashdorj Zorigt announced that the government was willing to compensate the damaged mining companies for the suspension and cancellation of the license.
The environment is destroyed
Mongolia, which owns the largest reserves of gold, copper and uranium in the world, is located right next to China, the economy is growing at a rapid pace. Therefore, for many years, especially since 2009, numerous foreign investors from China, Russia, the US, Canada, Australia . have flocked to Mongolia to mine.
According to government estimates, in Mongolia there are 1,083 mines of all kinds, of which only 419 mines are legal. These legal and illegal mining activities have seriously damaged the country's environment. Mining companies use outdated mining technologies such as dredging riverbeds, diversifying flows, using high pressure hose to destroy hillsides. As a result, in the past 15 years, about 900 rivers and streams in Mongolia have completely dried up.
In order to treat gold from gravel and sand, mining workers often use liquid mercury and cyanide, then emit waste containing mercury and cyanide into rivers and streams. According to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), to get 1 gram of gold, it must be released into 2-5 grams of mercury.
A survey by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) also revealed that mercury pollution hotspots are concentrated in the Selenge River area of northern central Mongolia. Over the past five years, mining workers in this area have used about 2.4 tons of mercury. About 54% of mercury is released into the air, 44% is buried in the ground. The World Health Organization (WHO) said that in some areas in Mongolia, the level of mercury pollution is 230 times higher than the permitted level.
Mercury and cyanide have seriously polluted rivers. The government estimates that 28 river basins in eight provinces have been " heavily polluted ", some " have been ruined to the point of irreversible ". Experts also reported that the Selenge River, the main flow into Lake Baikal, was seriously polluted, while water was an extremely rare resource in Mongolia. Currently, in this country, each km 2 of the territory has only about 22,000 m 3 of water, belonging to the group of 24 countries with the least water resources in the world. In many areas, people have repeatedly voiced help for the phenomenon of teratogenicity, malformations in babies and cattle due to contaminated water.
In April 2007, Khongor Soum villagers, about 200km north of the capital Ulan Bator, discovered a series of cattle that died after drinking water. The examination showed that the stomach was full of mercury and cyanide. Authorities found village water contaminated with mercury and cyanide from a nearby gold mine. The ratio of cyanide in water is 65 times higher than the safe level.
Leave the house for gold
The mining boom in Mongolia destroyed the traditional life of the nomadic people of this country. It is estimated that every year thousands of nomadic people abandon grasslands and cattle to plunge into the search for gold and precious metals. Many people drag the whole family, from children to the elderly, wandering around abandoned mines to gold after large mining companies leave . It is estimated that there are about 10,000 mining workers illegal in Mongolia, they appear as ghosts and are described as ninja. According to a survey by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), the total number of manual and illegal mining workers in Mongolia is up to 100,000.
' Our life is in danger ' - Tsetsegee Munkhbayar , an Onggi River herder, said. The river was heavily polluted by the mines. To save the region's legacy, Mr. Munkhbayar established the Onggi River Movement, which now has 1,600 members, to protect the environment. They protested at the mines and asked the government to take more stringent environmental and mining protection measures. The wave of anti-mining and environmental protection has been ongoing, not only limited to a few areas but also spread throughout Mongolia.
The pressure from public opinion proved effective when the government suspended more than 1,800 mining licenses. However, observers say the war for the environment in Mongolia will be prolonged because the government's viewpoint is generally to support the country's largest mining, export source. " We will never surrender," Munkhbayar said. "I just want my children and grandchildren to bathe in the river on Onggi river ."