THE Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) says it is committed to working towards an agreeable solution regarding mining in the Marudi Mountains in the Rupununi.
The Ministry in a release said it has noted the concerns raised by the Rupununi Mining Association and assures the body and its members that it has been working assiduously to arrive at solutions that are agreeable to all.

“This Ministry is committed to the mining sector and has been working and will continue to work towards seeing the sector progress in an environmentally sustainable manner,” the release said.

The Ministry noted that it was instrumental in the signing of a landmark mediation agreement among the different parties – mainly the miners of the Rupununi, including women miners, the Amerindian villages of the South Rupununi and Romanex Mining Guyana Limited on whose property the miners operated.
It noted that the agreement paved the way for mining to be continued once the environmental, safety and health issues stipulated in the mining regulations are adhered to.

The mediation agreement called on Romanex Mining Guyana Limited to conduct the necessary social and environmental impact assessments with a view to integrating the Rupununi miners and the concerns of the indigenous communities.
“We can confirm that of the 70 operators who were active when the mediation agreement was signed, just 39 now remain,” the ministry said.
The MNR also noted its recent announcement that a number of blocks of land have been set aside for displaced miners, including women miners, in an effort to ensure that their economic livelihood is preserved.
“We ask that miners continue to exercise patience as we work towards solutions,” the Ministry said.

The MNR recalled that on Friday, September 8, 2017, that in the apportioning of available lands, preference will be given to those individuals who were cooperating with the conformity process. Miners were advised to prospect the lands allocated before pronouncing on the geological viability of those lands, in the spirit of the agreement they signed in 2016.

The MNR said it will ensure that the GGMC supports the process of prospecting the lands to ascertain geological viability and will also be engaging miners shortly to discuss and agree on a way forward.