Australia - Worth its weight in Gold - the Campaign to Save Lake Cowal

worth its weight in gold

the campaign to save lake cowal

ruth rosenhek , rainforest information centre, australia

There is a large natural inland lake in southeast Australia, part of a greater wetland within a vast flood plain. Here, where 170 species of waterbirds make their home, Canadian miner Barrick Gold intends to develop a cyanide leaching gold mine at the lake's edge.

wetland bird sanctuary
Lake Cowal is the largest lake in the state of New South Wales. The lake is a high conservation region formally recognized under Australia's national nature and wetland registries. It may also be proposed for listing under the Ramsar Convention as a wetland of international importance, a step that would help conserve this precious habitat in a nation that has already lost 89 percent of its wetlands over the last century. The lake is an important habitat for bird species which Australia is required to conserve under China-Australia and Japan-Australia migratory birds agreements.

dig, crush, leach with cyanide
Barrick Gold (which recently merged with US-based Homestake Mining Corporation) plans to construct a huge pit, one kilometre long and 325 metres deep, that will cross the high water level of Lake Cowal. Cyanide leaching of the ore would produce one gram of gold for every 1.4 tonnes of ore. If the project goes ahead, 128 million tonnes of ore will be excavated.

A spill of wastewater containing cyanide or arsenic leaking from the ore body could severely damage the entire Cowal wetland and related waterways including the Murray River system. The only barrier between the lake and the open pit would be an earth wall. Tailings would be stored 3.5 kilometres from the lake in two dams subject to flooding within the same flood plain.

toxic propaganda
The environmental consequences of such a mine could be huge. One teaspoon of a two percent cyanide solution can kill an adult human. Cyanide is even more toxic to aquatic biota than to birds. Cyanide leaks and spills are commonplace in the industry, as are accidents that wipe out entire river systems and devastate bird life and other wildlife. Contrary to mining propaganda, cyanide-leach technology is not safe, nor does cyanide necessarily break down rapidly into safe chemicals. Many potential breakdown products are about as lethal as cyanide itself. In addition to cyanide risks, heavy metals such as zinc, cadmium and lead could enter soil and waterways. Arsenic levels are also high in the Lake Cowal ore body.

sacred lands
Lake Cowal, often called the Heartland of the Wiradjuri Nation, is a very important sacred region for Aboriginal traditional owners. Barrick and its predecessors have not properly consulted with many regional Aboriginal traditional owners, many of whom oppose the project. A recent native title claim may impede the mine, since native title has not been extinguished on a reserve overlying some of the gold.

In March 2002, Wiradjuri traditional owner Neville “Chappie” Williams took Barrick/Homestake to court, claiming that the company's current exploration at Lake Cowal is causing damage to sacred Wiradjuri relics and artefacts. The case led to an injunction to restrain Barrick/Homestake from further exploration drilling at the site.

a familiar story
The Lake Cowal project is eerily reminiscent of the Timbarra Gold Mine. Touted by the New South Wales department of mineral resources as a "world's best practice" gold mine, it later became the disgrace of the industry. In January and February 2001, prior to the mine shutting down, there were overflows from toxic wastewater ponds on at least two occasions.

worldwide coalition
The Coalition to Protect Lake Cowal is working to support the Aboriginal traditional owners in their efforts to halt the proposed Lake Cowal gold project. More than 40 groups worldwide have joined the campaign as supporters, including the World Conservation Union (IUCN) Sri Lanka, and World Wildlife Fund Bolivia. Some eighteen Australian groups have signed on as campaign members, including FoE Australia.

Campaign approaches include protests at company offices and events, direct action at the mine site, attendance at Barrick Gold's May 2002 annual general meeting, letter writing, media work, and legal and official approaches such as encouraging the nomination of Lake Cowal for Ramsar status.

For further information, visit: www.rainforestinfo.org.au/gold/lakeP.html or write to ruthr@ozemail.com.au.