Waiting For Plexmar

Everybody seemed to agree about the mining complex, when the existent agricultural-exporting complex should be empowered.

 

SUYO, Peru – The door was open to handcrafted mining at Quiroz Valley. The Regional Government of Piura insisted on the need to create a mining complex where the informal and formal extractors could be together to make this activity. It may mean the handcrafted mining in Piura lowlands is a collateral effect of Tambograndé Issue.

 

When Manhattan Minerals studied the geology of the batholith which the polimetallic deposits of Tambograndé are settled inside, it noted the vein enlarged toward the north and penetrated into Ecuador. Basically, the Canadian mining company substantiated that the bestquality ore was just down the surface – mainly gold, copper, silver, and zinc, in that proportion.

 

Although Manhattan quit Tambograndé, the news excited some investors who already were beginning to exploit mineral in Sapillica, Ayabaca Province. When the first phase of Tambograndé Issue was closed, in 2005, there were isolated reports of some settlements in the border of Sapillica and Tambograndé Districts, where stones were being extracted to obtain gold. One year later, a FACTORTIERRA’s editor confirmed the news, also filed, photographed, and published the information before the surprise of many locals, including former Mayor Segundo Moreno, which administration just started.

 

Then, the handcrafted-mining activities extended through a 37-mile corridor between Districts of Suyo and Sapillica, Ayabaca, and Las Lomas, Piura. A claim by the San Lorenzo Valley Irrigation District Users Board found sinkholes and rock shredders in Paimas District next to the San Lorenzo Irrigation infrastructure, and also at the other side of the range, next to the straight same name’s reservoir. At the west, the same activity was developed in lower proportion in Districts of Lanconés and Sullana, belonging to Sullana Province.

 

Although the Regional Government of Piura ruled the protection of San Lorenzo Reservoir and the irrigation basic infrastructure of that valley, it paralelly pitched the formalization of handcrafted mining. Former Regional President César Trelles belief it was the best way to avoid the negative consequences of this activity – pollution, we mean. During a visit to Piura, late Environment Minister Antonio Brack said to agree under the same terms.

 

Chira like a midden

Handcrafted miners admited by themselves they use mercury in the process. This liquid metal allow to separate the gold from the rock without economic value. An intervention by the Piuras environment Prosecutor Olenka Saldaña discovered that in other settlements, the cyanide was being used, like one intervened near Las Lomas City.

 

The mercury and the cyanide are toxic but botth work different ways. The mercury works long-term, and when it’s absorbed by any lifeform, it weakens its immunologic system and it even can alter its DNA by generating genetic mutations those can be transmitted to embrios. The cyanide is more letal because a spoon of this substance into a glass of water is enough to kill a person in five minutes.

 

The effects of mercury have been better documented on the Guarango Film & Video production about the spill of a Minera Yanacocha’s container in Choropampa, Peruvian Northern. Near 900 locals were affected and they were practically without an option to claim after they signature papers releasing Yanacocha of any criminal responsibility. The documentary states that, extrajudicially, some locals had a US$ 1500 compensation as an only payment.

 

About the cyanide, collective poisoning cases are ignored but many handcrafted miners in Suyo have reported medical emergencies due to an unadequate handling of this substance. Neither, there is any study about the potential risk of handcrafted mining tailings in Piura related to the water flows where they are left. Everyone is set to download to Macará, Quiroz, or Chipillico Rivers, and even Chira itself, where all lead into.

 

Sullana, the most important city of Chira Valley, has no clear policies about and the enough power to break down the advance of handcrafted mining either. It was learned that after detecting an informal shredder in the Sullana City southern sector, an intervention by the local police was frustrated without a reason. The problem was that the leakings affecting the neighbors who were patients of a rehabilitation center for drug consumers.

 

The only documented reference we have is Choropampa, and we have to be alert anyway before the symptoms described on the film: continuous nose bleeding, kidney pain, liver malfunction, miscarriages, congenital deformations, cancer, among others.

 

Mining Complex

According to Piura el Tiempo newspaper, Regional President Trelles summoned the mayors of the handcrafted mining corridor to organize and build a mining complex. It was ignored if all the handcrafted miners were registered, that had a 60% success until 2008. The only real is there is a mining company operating at the northern entrance of Las Lomas City despite the Mayor Cristian Vences said to be opposed to the activity, and needing the help of the neighborhood for proving the opposition is massive.

 

Along the handcrafted mining corridor, the opponents and the advocates were divided 50/50 including suyo where the mining complex would be located. That district’s former Mayor Segundo Telmo Guerrero offered a 100-hectare land to build the facility. What was not known – where it would locate considering the whole district territory is formed by farmer communities. El Tiempo also has noticed that the property of the extractors was not clear neither. Despite that, one of the leaders offered the facilities he said to own in La Puerta Village, in the border of Suyo and Las Lomas, belonging to San Sebastián farmer community.

 

All the area is formed by dry forest mainly. The agricultural land only appears at the banks of Quiroz and Macará, and Chira as well. But I just moves the zone’s economy on. Some entrepreneurships with little cattle passed to the background before the mining outbreak.

 

No authority spoke about the impact of dry forest, only the Prosecutor Olenka Saldaña who launched a campaign to defend the environment in general. What was not said neither – what the fate of Canadian mining company Plexmar would be, that thought to operate Bolsa del Diablo (Devil’s Bag) Project in Suyo District. In November 2008, it announced it was going to negotiate with handcrafted miners how to employ them as suppliers through a sub-contractor and carry the mineral out to the south.

 

The only place in Peruvian Southern where the minerals obtained by little miners are processed is in Caravelí, Arequipa Department, where many affirm only the gold is paid for, but they just reccuperate the production cost. Since that time, Plexmar didn’t report developings son this activity despite it should finish mid-January 2009.

 

The other questionning comes from Suyo neighborhood itself that has saw dangerous friends in the handcrafted miners who star scandals on weekends, inclusive coming to fight by gunshots. Las Lomas Mayor said to have denounced the presence of Ecuadorians in the camps allegedly covered up by the handcrafted miners. He set up a national security matter, notified the proper authorities without any result. It seems the Plexmar project’s name fits to the situation all this zone is in.

 

The choice

Tambograndé also had a solution to avoid the creation of a mining complex. Former Mayor Segundo Moreno announced on February 16th, 2009, that an agricultural-exporting complex should be pulled to take advantage of countryside potentials as a food provider and a foreign exchange generator for Peru.

 

Independently it had to work on the efficiency of production chains, the idea was viable and right. Actually, it didn’t have to start up from anything like the mining complex but to organize all the agricultural-industrial strip located between Cruceta and Tambograndé City, plus to empower the House of Farmer.

 

This entity was created by former Mayor Francisco Ojeda for the farmers to use as a business and connection center to their big markets. The idea was giving it international vision, and there is already a first agricultural-exporting complex working.

 

A second complex could be implemented in Cieneguillo Sector, Sullana, where La Limonera is located. FACTORTIERRA learns some entrepreneurs have projects to organize his space better purposed to serve most effectively to growers and retailers of Piura lime, that is exporting so shy to the rest of continent, especially Chile, where cebiché is pretty appreciated.

 

© 2009 Asociación Civil Factor Tierra. All Rights Reserved.

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