A report conducted by the Secretariat for Environmental Control and Supervision has identified several ways in which last September’s cyanide spill at Barrick Gold’s Veladero mine was mismanaged, according to La Nación.
The location of the Veladero mine and spill (Diagram by Diario de Cuyo)
According to newspaper, the report, which was written in October, came to light as employees of the former secretariat presented the findings to their new ministerial authorities before sending the data to the two courts handling case of environmental pollution. The report has not been publicly released.
The faults identified in the report include poor maintenance – citing the precarious structure and design of the channel carrying the mine’s waste water, as well as the failure of a valve due to extreme cold. It also highlighted operational faults such as a delay of more than an hour in detecting and containing the spill, and a problematic methodology for determining the quantity of material spilled.
When asked about the report, a spokesperson for Barrick Gold responded that it was neither new nor unknown, but rather part of a commission included in the process of renewing their permit for the generation and inter-jurisdictional transport of hazardous waste under Law 24.501 on dangerous residues.
Under the law, those generating and transporting dangerous waste materials are required to register and apply for a permit to be renewed annually. The law also outlines the necessary measures that must be taken to ensure the safe treatment of mining waste, as well as penalties for infractions, ranging from fines to permit suspension, and in some cases closure.
The report joins another, released in November 2015 by the Federal Police (PFA), which was the first to suggest that the spill – the extent of which was originally denied and grossly underestimated – constitutes a violation of the law 24.051 for leaking “dangerous contaminants outside of statutory range” into the five rivers in San Juan province.
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