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

sub-sector sector expanded very rapidly. Investors in SSM began to exploit gold deposits
in even more remote locations, aided by ATV‟s and excavators.
With some semblance of law and order restored in the interior, Suriname was once again
attractive to foreign investors. Golden Star was the first to set up office in Suriname and
soon other junior companies followed suit. Many local holders of concessions profited
from sub-letting their properties to foreign gold exploration firms. When the gold price
tumbled below US $ 300 per troy ounce in 1997-1998, Golden Star put the Gross Rosebel
project in „care and maintenance.‟ About 30 million US Dollars had already been
invested in reconnaissance and exploration on the property and elsewhere in the country.
Other juniors did the same with their prospects or pulled out altogether. Holders of
properties once again began looking at small-scale miners to save the day.
The initiatives under the Wijdenbosch government to bring the sub-sector under control
indicate that substantial resources can be collected by establishing a presence in the field.
It has been estimated that during the SIDU effort some 3 million US Dollars were
collected. Sufficient operational resources were available to fund the undertaking, but the
resources by themselves were not enough to guarantee success. Reinvesting a legally
specified percentage of sub-sector revenues would have provided a more predictable
basis from which to plan, organize and execute control type interventions.
The SIDU effort did not include a fully developed support program for miners to reduce
operational constraints and improve security. This is a critical condition for securing
miner‟s support as well as fending off criticism in the media that puts the government
under pressure to retract its policies and strategies. The number of posts envisioned was
also not enough to adequately monitor the gold mining in the interior.
There is a lack of an up-to-date and functional mining legislation that reflects the realities
of the sub-sector. The mining code of 1986 does not sufficiently acknowledge the
limitations faced by the government and the miners in the field, and underestimates the
institutional framework that must be in place before the sub-sector can be brought under
control. Today there are over 10,000 miners working in the interior, and it will be very
expensive to establish and maintain control posts in the main mining regions, which may
consist of 50 mining zones or more. The introduction of air travel and ATV‟s has greatly
expanded the operational range of small-scale miners. It will be very challenging to carry
out the government‟s regulatory tasks over such a vast area consisting of rugged
rainforest terrain.
The absence of specific environmental regulations is alarming and needs to be rectified as
soon as possible. How much environmental damage is Suriname community willing to
accept in lieu of the development benefits linked to the gold mining sector? In 1896
hydraulic mining was introduced in the interior of Suriname. Today almost every smallscale
miner uses the hydraulic method. Mercury is used at considerable health risks to the
miner, and the method has a devastating environmental impact.
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