Canadian-owned mine must be closed, says archbishop

Sixty per cent of the world’s publicly listed mining and exploration companies are listed on Canadian stock exchanges and half the world’s mining is conducted by Canadian companies.

July 4, 2013 | Web First
Michael Swan | The Catholic Register

The Archbishop of San Salvador is calling for international support in shutting down a Canadian-owned gold mine just across the border in Guatemala.

Archbishop José Luis Escobar Alas told his weekly press conference June 9 his country should “go to international justice mechanisms” if bilateral talks between El Salvador and Guatemala fail to prevent Vancouver-based GoldCorp from going ahead with the Cerro Blanco mine, which is already extracting gold bearing ore as part of an advanced exploration project.

Escobar believes the Canadian mine will inevitably contaminate Lake Guija, which feeds the Lempa River, El Salvador’s main source of drinking water.

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--June 20, 2013

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