Stabroek Business has been reliably informed that a draft report arising out of the recently commissioned official enquiry into accidents in the mining regions in Guyana including mining pit cave-ins that resulted in loss of life has been completed and is currently with “the relevant government officials” including senior officials of the Guyana Geo-logy and Mines Commission. (GGMC).
The enquiry arose out of mounting concern over a surfeit of accidents at some interior mining sites including one earlier this year that resulted in ten deaths and is thought to be with officials who are expected to provide feedback before the final document is completed.
Launched against the backdrop of widespread criticism of what is believed to be indifference to good safety practices in the mining sector by owners and operators the report is expected to make a number of recommendations with regard to more stringent safety practices even though this newspaper understands that the underlying concerns have to do with the full and effective implementation of safety rules.
Stabroek Business understands that the report is likely to focus on safety initiatives which not only place a higher level of responsibility on the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and its Mines Officers but also demands of managers of mining operations a higher level of self-monitoring and self-regulation. “We expect that the report will speak to the issue of the technical competence of the various managers of mining operations in areas that have to do with the safety and health of workers in mining communities,” the source said, adding that we are no longer dealing with the days of pork knockers where just a small amount of dirt was removed to access the gold but with an era in which tons of earth have to be removed.”
