Gold isn't cheap. In fact, it's price is the livelihood, land-base, and life of indigenous communities everywhere. The gold mining companies have billions to spend in litigation and lobbying, so changes in the current policies are going to have to come from us: the consumers... Let's get up to date on some Golden Rules.
One community particularly devastated by the mining industry is the Western Shoshone Nation, which is situated on about 60 million acres encompassing most of Nevada, and parts of Idaho, Utah and California. From the Shoshone lands, companies like Placer Dome, Barrick and Newmont are providing the world market with about 10% of the world's gold (64% of all US gold production) -- making Shoshone lands the 2nd largest gold producer in the world. Making this possible are outdated, bias laws such as the 1872 Mining Law, which allows the mining industry to purchase "public lands" for $2.50 an acre. These are the same lands that rightfully belong to the Shoshone by the Treaty of Ruby Valley.
A complaisant government is also to blame. In 2002, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights found that, where the Western Shoshone were concerned, the US government was in violation of such basic human rights as the right to property, due process and equality under the law. (It must be noted that these types of violations can be found all across Indian Country today, and the situation is certainly not unique to that of the Western Shoshone.) The discrimination and harrassment by the US government agencies and mining corporations has not gone unnoticed in the global community, and in August of this year the UN Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) issued a list of questions to the United States regarding these issues.
Although 50% of the gold mined from 1995-2015 will come from indigenous lands, it isn't just those living on Native land that should be concerned about the direct effect of mining on their everyday lives. I mean, we all have to breathe the same air and drink the same water, right?
For instance, metal mining is the #1 toxic polluter in the United States, with 96% of aresenic emissions and 76% of lead emissions - not to mention the cyanide pollution from the commonly-used leaching methods. And, if you take all of the trash generated by all of the cities and towns in the United States you would have to multiply it by nine to get the amount of waste generated by mines in the US every year. All that waste takes a lot of energy, too. The mining industry consumes approximately 10% of the world's energy yearly (while employing a mere .09% of the global workforce).
Just one gold ring produces about 20 TONS of waste.
That's where we come in... The most powerful, persuasive player in the mining industry is the consumer -- you and me. Of all that gold mined, all around the world, an astounding 80% of it is for jewelry! In this world, sometimes it's money NOT spent that can speak the loudest.
And, of course, we can write to our senators, the president, the mining companies... and each other.
For a more in-depth look at the issues please visit:
The Western Shoshone Defense Project
No Dirty Gold Campaign
Oxfam America
Honor the Earth
The Indigenous Environmental Network
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