Spill contained at Omai mine (September 04, 1995)

The cyanide spill at the Omai gold mine in north-central Guyana has been contained, and owners Cambior (TSE) and Golden Star Resources (TSE) hope the government will allow them to resume operations in a few months.

At a meeting with Cambior and Golden Star, the Guyanese cabinet indicated its desire to see the mine reopen once a board of inquiry had recommended acceptable environmental standards. Louis Gignac, president of Cambior, says the mine can be put back into production in as little as three months, provided all the interested parties co-operate.

The mine was shut down last month when it was discovered that effluent had seeped through the tailings dam and into the Omai River. The governing party, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic, had been critical of the project while in opposition. But since assuming power in 1992, the party has stressed Omai’s importance to the Guyanese economy.

Cyanide levels in the effluent and in the nearby Omai and Essequibo Rivers were measured by both Cambior and the government, and were much the same. Only one sample of Essequibo River water, taken in the early stages of the spill, had exceeded 0.2 parts per million cyanide, which is the Canadian drinking water guideline. Last week, total cyanide levels between Omai and Bartica, 125 km downstream, had fallen to below 0.001 parts per million.

The company, the government and observers sent by the World Health Organization agree there have been no effects on the populace or on aquatic life in the Essequibo.