Feb, 2000 the spill, which originated in northern romania, where a dam at the baia mare gold mine overflowed last month and caused cyanide to flow into streams, has not been diluted to a safe level despite. The cyanide code international cyanide management code. The contaminants thus began their journey through the carpathian mountains en route to the tisza river basin. Introduction on 30 january 2000, following a breach in the tailing dam of the aurul sa baia mare company, a major spill of cyaniderich tailings waste was released into the ri. On 30 january 2000, following a breach in the tailing dam of the aurul sa baia mare. Water pollution from a cyanide spill in eastern europe january 30, 2000 baia mare romania subsequent to the failure of a storage basin dyke on january 30, 2000, 300,000 m.
The spill, which originated in northern romania, where a dam at the baia mare gold mine overflowed last month and caused cyanide to flow into streams. January, 2000, romaniahungary thousands of tons of fish died in the tisza and danube rivers from a cyanide spill last year near baia mare in northwestern romania. The gold mining company, aurul, was a joint venture of australian. The mission on 30 january 2000, following a breach in the tailing dam of the aurul sa baia mare company, a major spill of. The baia mare cyanide spill had left several consequences behind. Cyanide generation during preservation of chlorinated wastewater effluent samples for total cyanide analysis joseph khoury, maria pang, connie young, anita pandit, steve carr, dwayne fischer, and james stahl abstract. Rain during the winter of 1999 and 2000 was unusually high, which caused large amounts of water to build up in pools. Regulation ec no 92004 merger procedure article 8 1 date. This cyanide management plan cmp describes the practices and procedures that stratagold corporation sgc will apply to the procurement, delivery, storage handling, and use of sodium cyanide cyanide reagent for mineral extraction purposes at the eagle gold project the. The baia mare cyanide spill romania, major chemical disasters of the world. Cyanide spill at baya mare by lance connell, addias mervin, monique m. In 2000 the tailings impoundment at baia mare, romania, was breached, releasing.
Baia mare 3 1 t he m ission on 30 january 2000, following a breach in the tailing dam of the aurul sa baia mare company, a major spill of cyanide rich tailings waste was released into the river. Cyanide spill at baia mare assessment mission report. The spill into the farmland and into the somes river resulted in levels exceeding permitted cyanide concentration by 700 times. If you want to combine the words with or, tick the box below the textual search field. Dechlorinating agents and ph adjustment are often used to preserve wastewater samples for cyanide analysis. A technological disaster can therefore affect several countries at once. The second was a spill which occurred at a pond owned by the state regie remin at baia borsa, close to baia mare.
Jun 14, 2017 the biggest and most widely known companies in the chemical compounds industry are among the largest businesses of any kind in the world. Compliance with the rules, regulations and laws of the applicable political jurisdiction is. Some 2,000 kilometres of the danubes water catchment area were affected by the spill. Cyanidespill suit is settled in colorado the new york times. International cyanide management code icmi for the. This cyanide management plan cmp describes the practices and procedures that stratagold corporation sgc will apply to the procurement, delivery, storage handling, and use of sodium cyanide cyanide reagent for mineral extraction purposes at the eagle gold project the project, yukon territory, canada. This is a summary of the unepochareport on the cyanide spill at baia mare, romania. Compensation hungarian environment minister pal pepo met romanias deputy environment minister anton vlad on thursday to discuss ways of monitoring the spill and seeking confiscation. Baia mare cyanide spill by iliana martinez on prezi. Article cyanide spill at baia mare assessment mission report unepocha. Feb 16, 2000 hungary to sue over cyanide spill more about the danube cyanide spill. It is intended to complement an operations existing regulatory requirements.
May 28, 2014 in 2000, the baia mare cyanide spill was one of the worst environmental disasters to ever occur. In 1999, the state filed suit over the cleanup, which is expected. On the night of january 30, 2000, a dam holding contaminated waters burst at a mining works in bozinta mare baia mare. A summary of this decision is published in all community languages in the official journal of the european union. Baia mare simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Spread of the cyanide spill from baia mare european. The cyanide poured into streams from a containment dam at a gold mine. Such a ban would have been disastrous for the global gold industry because cyanide is the only chemical capable of economically recovering the great majority of the worlds gold. The cyanide spill at baia mare, romania publications regional. In 2000, the baia mare cyanide spill was one of the worst environmental disasters to ever occur. The cyanide poured into streams from a containment dam at a gold mine near the rumanian town of baia mare on january 30. An hour before midnight on january 30, 2000, a dam holding back water in a settling area for the baia mare gold mine burst, spilling its contents into the somes river, and subsequently into the tisza river. The baia mare cyanide spill romania, major chemical. The ecological effects of mining spills in the tisza river. Pollution flowed into europes second largest river, the danube, and finally into the black sea, across six countries. Jan 31, 2001 from the processing plant in baia mare, the cyanide solution is carried by pipe to two aboveground storage lakes, between the villages of sasar and bozanta, 12 kilometres southwest of baia mare. First used on a large scale in the 1970s, cyanide mining allows miners to coax microscopic gold flecks from lowgrade ore. Lessons learned cyanide contaminant spill baia mare. The cyanide spill at baia mare, romania rec publications.
The romanian government owns the other 50% of aurul, which is located near baie mare in northwestern romania. The spill happened because of poor dam design and unusal weather conditions. Newmont mining to pay fine for spill at ghana mine. Sodium cyanide now is the chemical of choice in the gold mining industry throughout the world and mining is the main sodium cyanide consumer worldwide, with 180 000 tonnes annually.
In 1992, a cyanide spill from the summitville mine in southern colorado killed all life in a 17mile stretch of the alamosa river. The biggest and most widely known companies in the chemical compounds industry are among the largest businesses of any kind in the world. Cyanide generation during preservation of chlorinated. Hungary to sue over cyanide spill more about the danube cyanide spill. The cyanide management plan will integrated with obe ther relevant environmental management plans e. Introduction on 30 january 2000, following a breach in the tailing dam of the aurul sa baia mare company, a major spill of cyanide rich tailings waste was released into the ri. Mining and the destruction of baia mare livebetter magazine.
Baia mare companys tailing dams to the nearby sasar river. Mike anane, environment news service, published on. The first accident was a major cyanide and heavy metals spill which occurred following a dam burst of a tailing pond at a romanianaustralian joint venture, aurul baia mare. M ore than 100,000 cubic meters of heavily poisoned water, rich in cyanide and other toxic heavy metals, such as copper and zinc, spilled through a tailings dam breach jan. Urban regeneration in the aftermath of the baia mare. Undeadly cyanide spill taints camecos kyrgyzstan venture wsj. Cyanide spill a catastrophe of european dimensions by julie hyland 15 february 2000 a poisonous chemical spill has destroyed wildlife and fish stocks and threatened the water supplies of 2. Transboundary environmental governance and the baia mare. Bbc news europe cyanide leak mine had technical problems. A spill of toxic chemicals will spread wherever the surrounding air or water takes it. Company, a major spill of cyaniderich tailings waste was. Over the past months, the baia mare task force has visited the three countries primarily affected. Hungary to sue over cyanide spill world news the guardian. It also tainted one of the most successful foreign investments in the former soviet union.
Baia mare cyanide spill on january 30th 2000 a retaining wall failed at the aurul gold processing plant in baia mare on the romanianhungarian border, releasing 100,000 cubic metres of cyanide contaminated water containing approximately 100 tonnes of cyanides. Baia mare is a municipality in the northwestern part of romania. Cyanide spill at baya mare by lance connell, addias. Baia mare gold exploitation, romania the baia mare spill is considered the second cernobyl the baia mare accident in 2000 occurred on the territory of this town, in bozanta mare, when the tailings dam broke and cyanide mining waste spilled in tisa river and further on in the danube. A dam failure resulted in the leak of 100,000 cubic metres of cyanidecontaminated water which spilled into the somes and tisza. Five cows in the nearby village of zazar died after water contaminated with cyanide was released from the baia mare mines pipe system. Merger and acquisition activity in the water industry water has long been touted as the next big investment opportunity, with some going so far as to call it the next oil. The report followed a joint investigative mission to the affected areas and was carried out by a team of 20 scientists during the period february 23 to march 6, 2000. International cyanide management institute 1400 i street, nw, suite 550 washington, dc 20005, usa ph. Managing cyanide to minimise risks to human and environmental health represents one of the key challenges that continues to face the mining industry. The mission on 30 january 2000, following a breach in the tailing dam of the aurul sa baia mare company, a major spill of cyanide rich tailings waste was released into the. Cyanide spill at baia mare romania unepocha assessment.
The ensuing public outcry called for banning the gold industrys use of cyanide. In order to assist the global mining industry to improve its management of cyanide, the code was developed by a multi stakeholder steering committee and is today managed by the international cyanide. Compensation hungarian environment minister pal pepo met romanias deputy environment minister anton vlad on thursday to discuss ways. Newmont found guilty of major cyanide spill at ghanian mine. The 2000 baia mare cyanide spill was a leak of cyanide near baia mare, romania, into the some. Environment and health, sustainability transitions, cyanide concentration values download. Analysis of the transport of cyanide spill on the tisza river. That analogy seems appropriate for a commodity so essential to human health, but several characteristics have kept water from becoming a breakout investment category. Create marketing content that resonates with prezi video. Hungary asserted the spill killed 1,241 tonnes of fish in hungary.
Merger and acquisition activity in the water industry. Five years after the cyanide spill posted on 31 january 2005 five years after becoming known for cyanide and heavy metal spills, the wonderful maramures and its resources including the river tisa and its tributaries is now part of a paneuropean wwf project which aims to promote new approaches to integrated land and water. Urban regeneration in the aftermath of the baia mare cyanide spill. The plume of pollution then spread into the tisza river, and proceeded across the romanian border, to ukraine, slovakia and hungary. Sep, 2008 m ore than 100,000 cubic meters of heavily poisoned water, rich in cyanide and other toxic heavy metals, such as copper and zinc, spilled through a tailings dam breach jan. Dec 24, 2000 in 1992, a cyanide spill from the summitville mine in southern colorado killed all life in a 17mile stretch of the alamosa river. Cyanide spill at baia mare romania unep ocha assessment. In these cases, the response effort needs not only efficient coordination, but also impartial and neutral assistance best provided by a multilateral response. Water pollution from a cyanide spill in eastern europe. A cyanide spill in remote kyrgyzstan contaminated more than a scenic river.
Posted on february 7, 2012 leave a comment the 2000 baia mare cyanide spill was a leak of cyanide near baia mare, romania, into the somes river by the gold mining company aurul, a jointventure of the australian company esmeralda exploration and the romanian. The consequence of baia mare cyanide spill term paper. Cyanide spill floods into danube world news the guardian. Cyanide spill a catastrophe of european dimensions world. Baia mare cyanide spill on january 30th 2000 a retaining wall failed at the aurul gold processing plant in baia mare on the romanianhungarian border, releasing 100,000 cubic metres of cyanidecontaminated water containing approximately 100 tonnes of cyanides. From the processing plant in baia mare, the cyanide solution is carried by pipe to two aboveground storage lakes, between the villages of sasar and bozanta, 12 kilometres southwest of baia mare. River by the gold mining company aurul, a jointventure of the australian company esmeralda exploration and the romanian government the polluted waters eventually reached the tisza river and then the danube, killing large numbers of fish in hungary, serbia, and romania. It was the largest of these which burst a dyke exactly a year ago, on the night of 30 january 2000, and poured,000 cubic metres of cyanide. The cyanide code is a voluntary initiative for the gold and silver mining industries and the producers and transporters of the cyanide used in gold and silver mining. Figure created 12 nov 2009 published 12 nov 2009 last modified 09 nov 2017 1 min read. The gold and cyanide combine during the leaching process, creating a. Baia mare black sea bulgaria ukraine moldova yugoslavia romania hungary slovakia this is a summary of the unepochareport on the cyanide spill at baia mare, romania.