Mongolia: Protect Water Supply from Copper and Gold Mine
- by: Judith B.
- recipient: Government of Mongolia
The mining company Rio Tinto operates Oyu Tolgoi, a vast copper and gold mine in the Gobi desert. It now plans to expand the mine, threatening the drinking water of hundreds of nomadic people
On top of threatening the water supply, the mine produces great clouds of dust, choking people, their animals and the wildlife and making it nearly impossible to see.
Consent from local people has not been provided for Rio Tinto’s expansion plans. According to Oyu Tolgoi Watch, the mining company didn’t even bother to get permission from the Mongolian government.
Aggressive, unregulated mining operations pose potentially catastrophic risks to the people and wildlife of the area. In a desert environment, the water supply is a matter of life and death and its control should not be passed over to outside interests.
Tell the Mongolian government to formulate a comprehensive plan to protect the country’s environment and people as a matter of the utmost urgency.
We the undersigned ask that you take immediate action to regulate the activities of the mining companies operating in Mongolia, which are posing a severe threat to the water supply of local people and the Mongolia’s unique ecosystems.
In particular, Rio Tinto is planning to enormously expand the Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine, using vast amounts of water and potentially devastating the local environment. It does not appear to have received community, or even government, consent for these plans.
International mining companies cannot be relied upon to regulate themselves. The industry has a long history of human rights and environmental abuses and it is up to governments to control their operations.
While the exploitation of Mongolia’s mineral resources could be a source of great wealth and a boost to the country’s economy, the government must take full responsibility for regulating mining operations. Otherwise, the environment could be devastated and people’s lives ruined and lost.
Please take action on this issue as a matter of the utmost urgency.
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