by eyetee | January 21, 2014 2:06 pm
A coalition of jewellers and conservation groups is speaking out against a proposed open-pit gold mine in Santa Fe, N.M. they say would consume enough water to sustain thousands of households.
In its report, “Public Risk, Private Reward: An Analysis of the Ortiz Gold Mine Proposal,” Earthworks, Fair Jewelry Action, and the Turquoise Trail Preservation Trust say the Ortiz mine may consume the water equivalent of between 4600 and 7800 New Mexicans annually.
The report also states the 305-m (1000-ft) mine—owned by Sante Fe Gold—could potentially endanger area water supplies by draining acidic runoff into groundwater.
“Dirty, conflict ridden gold has become too common in the jewellery sector, which is why jewellers of conscience must speak up against mining companies and produce jewellery made with artisan-scale fair trade gold and recycled precious metals,” says Marc Choyt, president of Santa Fe-based Reflective Images and co-founder of Fair Jewelry Action.
The coalition says the report has been reviewed and endorsed by Glenn Miller of the University of Nevada, Reno, a leading scientist on the environmental impacts of gold mining.
Santa Fe Gold president and chief executive officer (CEO) W. Pierce Carson told the Santa Fe Reporter last October the company plans to use environmentally friendly processes to extract and separate the gold, as well as less water than typically consumed.
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