In direct contravention of three cease-work orders Chinese firm Bai Shan Lin continued to remove laterite and sand from Moblissa and Bamia respectively up to Thursday afternoon.
When Stabroek News visited the area on Thursday several trucks, none which bore local registration numbers, were transferring the minerals from locations at Moblissa and Bamia to the Bai Shan Lin worksite several miles off the highway on the Demerara River front.
Efforts to contact Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment Robert Persaud proved futile.
Top officials of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) said the company would be prosecuted because it had no permission to mine either sand or laterite. The officials said two cease-work orders had been given but were rescinded to allow the company to extract laterite to repair a farmers’ access road that had been badly damaged by the heavy-duty trucks being used to transport material from the pit to the concession.
GGMC said the third cease-work order was issued two weeks ago. This remains in effect. According to this document, GGMC officials had gone late Thursday to enforce it but the company apparently got wind of their impending arrival and ceased operations some time close to 6 pm that day.
The regulatory agency, according to sources, could go as far as seizing Bai Shan Lin’s equipment if it continues to violate the cease-work order.
Chinese workers at the mining site claimed not to speak English. The local workers asked this newspaper to check with the company’s head office at Shamrock Gardens, East Coast Demerara.
However, when this newspaper visited that office on Friday, the word was that one of the managers, Allan, would not be in office until Tuesday and Deputy General Manager Girwar Lalaram was in a meeting. Efforts to contact anyone via the mobile number provided proved futile.
A female Administrative Assistant of the company first told Stabroek News that no mining was ongoing. However, when told that this newspaper had evidence of such, she stated that two cease-work orders were rescinded. Questioned as to why mining was still ongoing as of Thursday, she claimed that the last cease-work order was only served on Thursday and as far as she was aware no work was being done. Anything further on the issue should be taken up with the deputy general manager, she said.
Bai Shan Lin had on Wednesday met residents of Moblissa after they had complained that their concerns over the illegal mining were not being addressed. Representatives at that meeting included Country Manager of Bai Shan Lin Hongbo Chu; a management employee Allan (only name given); President of the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association Clinton Williams and an official of the GGMC. Residents had asked that an environmental engineer be present and Charles Ceres volunteered his services. The residents accused the company of carrying out unlawful works at Moblissa and ignoring the cease-work order served on it by the GGMC.
Bai Shan Lin, which has a licence for logging had been removing laterite—a soil type rich in iron and aluminium—from Moblissa for the construction of a two-mile road at Bamia. This, residents said, not only has negative environmental impacts, but was destroying their main access road as the large heavy-duty equipment traversing the thoroughfare left the road in disrepair.
Residents on Thursday expressed surprise that not 24 hours had elapsed and the company was already reneging on promises made.
“We had a meeting yesterday and these Chinese promised to stop working and fix the road and all kinds a story… I am just shocked that they come back today and doing the same thing. I am fed up and tired no one wants to come and verify for themselves. The company tells them this and they believe but just look what’s happening,” Debra Cornelius told Stabroek News.
During this newspaper’s visits to both Moblissa and Bai Shan Lin’s Bamia worksite several trucks were seen traversing the road with sand and laterite.
Sand mining was being done some two miles into a desolate forested area in Bamia, while laterite was being mined a few metres off the main access road at Moblissa.
Evidence of erosion could be seen and residents pointed out one pit that was already mined out at Moblissa and a short distance away where a new mining pit had been dug.
The state of the destruction on the access road at Moblissa was also evident; tracks of the trucks and machinery sunk in the road.
Shortly before 6 pm, when the last truck was loaded with laterite at Moblissa, Bai Shan Lin’s front end loader spread a bucket full of the mineral in an attempt to repair a part of the road that was destroyed during the day. Both that machine and the truck then left the site with residents pondering the future of their environment.
