Central African Republic report cites ‘ecological disaster’ in calling for closure of 4 Chinese gold mines
- A commission discovered a rising death rate in fishing villages as well as shrinking access to clean drinking water
- Commission also turned up suspicions of accounting irregularities during its investigation
Four Chinese-run gold mines should be closed in the Central African Republic because of pollution threatening public health, a parliamentary panel said in a report published on Saturday.
“Ecological disaster,” “polluted river,” “public health threatened,” were some of the phrases used in the report.
“Gold mining by the Chinese firms at Bozoum is not profitable for the state and harmful to the population and the environment,” the commission found after its investigation into mining in the northern town.
“The nature of the ecological disaster discovered on-site justifies the immediate, unconditional halt to these activities,” the report found.
A local missionary, Father Aurelio Gazzera, has published a video showing the state of the river and named the four firms concerned as Tian Xian, Tian Run, Meng and Mao.
Members of the commission spent four days in Bozoum a month ago in response to “multiple complaints from the population.”