SITUATION ANALYSIS OF THE SMALL-SCALE GOLD ... - WWF

second informal system to the existing one. When the government changed in 2000, this
effort to bring the sub-sector under control was put on hold.
Operation Goldfinger did have some positive impacts. It inspired several mining
companies to develop their own systems of control in mining regions and zones. These
companies pay taxes to the government on the 10% concession fee that they collect from
small-scale miners operating on their concessions. These initiatives open the door for the
government to involve the private sector in the development and maintenance of
instruments of control in the vast and numerous mining zones of the interior. This subject
is discussed in greater detail in chapters IV and V.
2.5 Analysis of the gold mining history
The short overview of the history of gold mining in Suriname reveals patterns that have
repeated themselves, and are likely to be repeated in the future. As has often been the
case in other parts of the world, the first gold rush in Suriname involved thousands of
individuals not organized into companies or cooperatives, often with little or no
knowledge and experience in any kind of mining. A typical “storming” cycle got
underway, but before the masses of miners could proceed to the “forming” phase largescale
operators moved into the gold fields, backed by foreign capital.
Once investors in collaboration with larger gold mining enterprises had the time to
review the situation, plan and fund operations, the second phase of mechanized mining
began. But also here lack of knowledge and understanding of the gold geology and
mining conditions in Suriname, as well as lack of adequate prospecting and financial
planning, caused most of the large operations to fail. After the 1980s investments in
small-scale outfits mining increased considerably, as did the operational costs. Units
today use heavy equipment and consume considerable amounts of diesel. Since no
systematic prospecting is carried out, the risk of failure is high.
History demonstrates that, predicting the demise of SSM is a tricky affair. It is very
difficult to anticipate the developments of the world market price for gold. It may be even
more difficult to predict new technological innovations that would make it possible to
mine much lower-grade deposits. The possibility of the development of new geological
knowledge or discoveries is also difficult to anticipate, particularly since the interior of
Suriname has only been superficially surveyed.
In the 1970s and 1980s the second gold rush was initiated by small-scale miners. The
higher gold price was an incentive for the rush, but also factors such as landlessness and
poverty in northern Brazil, and a decline in the standard of living in Suriname. Moreover,
new and more efficient gold mining technology became available. The new six and eight
inch dredge and hydraulic operations could process volumes of ore comparable to the
LSM operations around the turn of the 18 th and 19th century. The interior war (1986-
1992) intensified the dependence of many interior communities on gold mining. After
the peace treaty was signed in August of 1992, that brought an end to the interior war, the
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