Drillbits & Tailings
Volume 5, Number 8
May 31, 2000

"The two major objectives of the project are: (a) attract new private
mining investment and support the systematic development of increased, yet
environmentally sound mineral production; and (b) arrest mining related
environmental degradation and mitigate the damage that results from the use
of primitive and inadequate technology by informal miners." Memorandum from
the President of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
(IBRD), one of the World Bank's five lending institutions. - (see:
"Ecuadorian NGO Pulls World Bank In to Inspect Violations of Policies")
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Contents

NEWS
+ New Evidence Reveals Unocal's Complicity in Abuses in Burma
+ Clinton/Gore Administration Backs Occidental Petroleum (Part 2)
+ Freeport Faces Investigation Due to Disaster and Mismanagement
+ Ecuadorian NGO Pulls World Bank In to Inspect Violation of Policies
DIARY: Olive Oil Power Plants Could Give OPEC the Slip
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Write to Ecuador's Ministry of the Environment and demand
that he not release the mineralogical survey information.
HOTSPOTS: Australia, China, Germany, India, Kenya, New Zealand, Nigeria,
Russia, United States
VITAL STATISTICS: Toxic Chemical Discharges from the Mining Industry in the
United States
COMMUNITY PIPELINE: Contacts, Conferences, Publications, Websites

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NEW EVIDENCE REVEALS UNOCAL'S COMPLICITY IN ABUSES IN BURMA

Fresh evidence of oil company complicity and funding of human rights abuses
and forced labor surrounding the Yadana and Yetagun gas pipeline project in
Burma has been uncovered by EarthRights International during a four-year
investigation. Documents found by EarthRights, including reports from the
United States Embassy in Rangoon, confirm reports by witnesses that Unocal,
Total, and Premier were aware that forced labor was being used in
connection with the projects and that military forces providing security
services to the projects engaged in human rights abuses.

The Yadana and Yetagun pipeline projects cross the southeastern Tenasserim
region of Burma, pumping gas from offshore wells in the Andaman Sea to
power plants in neighboring Thailand. The early stages of the project were
accompanied by a full-scale military invasion by Burmese armed forces. The
pipeline route through the region was chosen by the country’s military
junta, the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), who officially
renamed the country Myanmar soon after taking power in 1988.

Army deserters have reported that they were told their primary mission was
to secure the area on behalf of the oil companies. “Securing” the area
included the construction of a string of military bases, intimidation and
terror against villagers, and forcible relocation of entire villages.
Consultants for the Yetagun project (then operated by Texaco, which has
since left its joint venture with Premier) reported that military housing
was being built with forced, unpaid labor:

“The harsh conditions of those carrying out such labour including young
children and the testimony of local people who will go to extremes to avoid
it, belies the [Burmese] Government claim that such work is voluntary,”
said the consultants.

Unocal employee Joel Robinson admitted to the US embassy that the company
was hiring the Burmese military to act as security guards for the Yadana
pipeline, as well as to supervise the building of helipads along the
pipeline route. The company was warned by its consultants that it risked
being a partner to the use of forced labor and appearing “at best naive and
at worst a willing partner in the situation.”

Witnesses, forced laborers, and soldiers have confirmed that villagers were
forced to clear the pipeline route and to build the helipads. Total
responded to concerns of forced labor by providing wages to some forced
laborers, but not the option of declining the work. The report documents
that many of these paid involuntary workers had their wages garnished by
the military and that entire communities were forced to pay a variety of
fees to the military.

The two pipeline projects, and their corporate backers, have been the
target of an international solidarity campaign for the past nine years. On
May 22, 2000 - the same day the investigation report was released - over
100 demonstrators rallied at Unocal’s annual meeting in suburban Brea,
California. As drummers in skull masks performed with mock bones on
upturned Unocal oil barrels outside, a shareholder resolution on Unocal’s
ethical and social responsibility attracted the largest support so far
amongst Unocal shareholders.

The resolution, which would tie CEO Roger Beach’s salary to the company’s
ethical performance, including on its Burma project, won the backing of
shareholder who own 16.4% of the company, an unusually high level of
support for a human rights-based resolution. The demonstration, organized
by the Burma Forum of Los Angeles, was endorsed by the LA County Federation
of Labor as well as Burmese exile groups.

Sources: “Total Denial Continues” by Gary Gentile et al, EarthRights
International, May 2000; “Protesters Rally Against Unocal,” Associated
Press, May 22, 2000.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Clinton/Gore Administration Backs Occidental Petroleum (Part 2)

When a gas drilling project by Occidental Petroleum (Oxy) in northeastern
Bangladesh went disastrously wrong in 1997, officials at the highest level
of the Clinton/Gore administration stepped in to defend the company and to
preserve its contract with the Bangladeshi government. Meanwhile, severe
damage to villages and the environment from a 1997 fire remains only
partially compensated.

A series of US government interventions on behalf of Oxy to the Bangladeshi
government suggest that the Clinton/Gore administration was effectively
offering private diplomatic services to the Los Angeles-based oil company.

On June 15, 1997, after only twelve days into drilling, the Moulavi Bazar
#1 gas well experienced a major blowout. The explosion of gas turned into
an inferno, towering over 300 feet (91meters) and spreading to the
surrounding rainforest, cropland, and villages. The village of Magurcharra
Khasi Punji, which was just 600 feet (182 meters) away from the drillsite,
lost seven homes, and many trees that the village relied on for basic
survival.

"Our lives have come to a total halt. We cannot pluck and sell our pans at
this moment. No pan, no money. No food," said Danis Khongla, a local
resident, nearly two months after the blast. Rail lines through the region
were closed for five months and the blowout itself was not sealed for six
months.

Occidental had failed to secure environmental permits before beginning
drilling on June 2, and later insisted that it had been ignorant of the
law. The pocket of gas that caused the blowout was located about 1 mile (2
kilometers) above the gas deposit the well was meant to tap. The pocket had
been identified in earlier seismic studies, but was hit "unexpectedly" at
the time of drilling.

"It was a gross negligence on the part of the operator" that caused the
fire, said Professor Badrul Imam, Chairman of the Geology department of
Dhaka University. On January 10, 1998, the original contract to explore for
oil between Occidental, its partners Unocal and the International Monetary
Fund (IFC), and the state-run oil firm Petrobangla expired. With the
disaster in mind, the Bangladeshi government seemed unsympathetic to a
request from the companies for an extension on the contract.

But then the US government intervened. Then US Ambassador to the United
Nations, Bill Richardson accepted an invitation from Occidental lobbyist
Robert McGee to meet with the Bangladeshi Commerce Minister. He also
traveled to Bangladesh in April 1998.

A confidential memo from Richardson to the Bangladeshi government said,
"I’m troubled by reports that the future of the joint venture between
Occidental Petroleum and Unocal … is in jeopardy." He told the government
to "move swiftly to grant the extension… so they can get on with their
important work. Nothing would please me more than to inform President
Clinton that the US companies were awarded the blocks they are seeking."

In a leading Bangladeshi newspaper, Janakantha, a Bangladeshi government
official called Richardson’s intervention "brazen" but added, "We don’t
think we can do much about it." The extension was granted, and Occidental
remained in the country until a 1999 trade that gave Unocal sole control of
the project and US$125 million in still-unpaid compensation for the fire.

American policy towards Bangladesh continues to focus on gas development.
With American companies leading the gas sector, US ambassadors and State
Department officials have continued to press Bangladesh to export its gas
and offer better terms to foreign investors. Meanwhile US government
delegations, like President Clinton’s March 2000 visit, have offered small
foreign aid grants while discussing much larger energy projects.

These, one Bangladeshi critic, writing under the pseudonym Q. Mia, argues:
"represent negligible sums, made to distract attention from the hundreds of
millions of dollars that American corporations stand to gain in the gas
fields. It makes you look progressive. It serves to legitimise your
presence. It’s damn good business."

SOURCES: “Bangladesh: The Ambassador from Big Oil (brief in "Global
Marketplace")," Earth Island Journal, by Ken Silverstein, Fall 1998,
"Gore’s Oil Money," by Ken Silverstein, The Nation, May 22, 2000;
"Occidental pleads ignorance of law," The Independent, October 31, 1997;
"Magurchhara Khasi Punji worst hit by gas explosion," The Independent,
August 5, 1997; "Occidental meets resistance in Bangladesh," Alexander’s
Gas and Oil Connections, January 28, 1998; "Occidental to continue
exploration in Bangladesh," Alexander’s Gas and Oil Connections, March 18,
1998; "Unocal acquires gas blocks from Occidental in Bangladesh,"
Associated Press, July 28, 1999; Q. Mia, "The willing fields of
Bangladesh," Himal Magazine, September 1998;
(http://himalmag.com/98sept/willing.htm) Integrated Exploration and
Development Services Ltd., Scout Report on Bangladesh
(http://www.ieds.com/Scout_Reports/samples/sea_10/bdshtxt.htm).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FREEPORT FACES INVESTIGATION DUE TO RECENT DISASTER AND PAST MISMANAGEMENT

A mountain of loosely stacked rubble, known as overburden, slid into Lake
Wanagon, an alpine lake near the Grasburg gold mine in Papua's Jayawijaya
district, causing a mini-tsunami of water to overflow and pour into the
valley below. Four workers were killed and villages downstream were badly
damaged. This occurred on May 4, 2000, the day before the annual
shareholders meeting for Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold, the US
multinational who operates Grasburg, one of the world's largest gold mines.

As a result, the Indonesian government has begun to scrutinize Freeport's
operations at Grasburg and, for the first time in the mine's twenty-eight
year history, the government is questioning Freeport’s management of the
project. In particular, they have demanded that Freeport stop dumping
overburden in the valley beside Lake Wanagon and that they reduce the
production of the mine from 230,000 tonnes per day (tpd).

Although the company has agreed to this in principle, it is unclear what
level of production will be deemed sustainable and tolerable. Given that
Freeport has spent hundreds of millions of dollars ramping up to this level
of production from around 100,000 tpd three years ago, they will loose
money on their capital investments no matter what decision is finally made.

This accident is a major setback for the company, but it may only be the
tip of the iceberg as the true flaws in Freeport's operations are exposed.
Although a recent process audit by Montgomery Watson gave the company a
rubber stamp of approval, its validity has been cast into serious doubt.
Religious shareholders from the Seattle Mennonite Church report that the
audit concluded that Freeport "has incorporated modern, state-of-the
practice geotechnical stability techniques in siting and designing the
Wanagon and Carstenz overburden stockpiles". However, given that there are
now four people dead due to the stockpile design, this is an obvious
overestimation of the work.

On May 8 and then again on May 18, protests against Freeport in Jakarta,
Indonesia's capital, shut down the company's offices there and prevented a
thousand employees from this and several other firms going to work. These
demonstrations were in support of the people of Papua (the province
previously known as Irian Jaya) where Freeport operates the giant Grasburg
mine. As well as protesting the environmental devastation and deaths caused
by the spill, they were demanding that PT Freeport Indonesia hand over more
of its earnings to support locals in the impoverished province.

Demands for a re-negotiation of Freeport’s contract, which was a sweetheart
deal signed with the former dictator Suharto before Indonesia had even
occupied Papua, are garnering popular and political support. The Friends of
the Earth group in Indonesia, known as WALHI, has launched a national
campaign to win an environmental audit of Grasburg and to re-negotiate the
terms of environmental management and income distribution outlined in the
Contract of Work. On Thursday May 25, Indonesian government announced that
it will ask a new human rights commission to begin in June to investigate
possible abuses by Freeport McMoRan.

SOURCES: ”Indonesia May Probe U.S. Mining Co.”, The Associated Press, May
25, 2000; "Freeport agrees to cut production", Jakarta Post Business News,
May 24, 2000; "Protest blocks Freeport Indonesia staff from work", Reuters,
May 19, 2000; “Indonesia copper mine spillage”, Financial Times, May 6, 2000.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ECUADORIAN NGO PULLS WORLD BANK IN TO INSPECT VIOLATION OF GUIDELINES

The Defensa y Conservacion Ecologica de Intag (DECOIN) has successfully
campaigned the World Bank to conduct an investigation of a project it
funded for the Ecuadorian government. This is the first time a claim
against the World Bank has been successfully filed in Ecuador and the first
time an Inspection Panel has been sent to Ecuador.

The project under question is called the "Mining Development and
Environmental Control Project" or PRODEMINCA. It is a mineralogical survey
that began in 1998 with a loan from the World Bank and has already mapped
out mineral deposits throughout 6.9 million acres (2.8 million hectares) of
western Ecuador.

The area surveyed includes multiple reserves and biologically diverse
hotspots including an 850 square mile (2,200 square kilometer) area know as
Intag located in the Imbabura Province. This province is home to an
enormous variety of ecological niches and some 70 communities with a
population of 30,000 people, most of who are farmers and fisherfolk. Also
within the area mapped is the Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve which is
the only reserve in northwestern Ecuador and is the last remnant of western
forest left in the country.

DECOIN, a grassroots environmental organization located in the Intag area,
claims that the survey will open up the area to multinational mining
interest as well as settlers and other smaller mining enterprises. They
claim that the Bank did not evaluate the potential long-term impacts of
providing maps of mineral deposits to the Ecuadorian government. They also
charge that the Bank has not monitored the project carefully enough and
that the lack of control and surveillance has done harm to the communities
and ecosystem of Intag.

In an initial response to DECOIN's request for an investigation, the Bank
agreed that an investigation should be conducted but it denies that project
will have any negative effect on the protected areas, and claims that
mapping of the mineral deposits of these areas will not lead to mineral
exploitation, even if a mineral deposit is eventually found.

The Bank however directly contradicts itself in the same statement by
saying about PRODEMINCA: "The two major objectives of the project are: (a)
attract new private mining investment and support the systematic
development of increased, yet environmentally sound mineral production; and
(b) arrest mining related environmental degradation and mitigate the damage
that results from the use of primitive and inadequate technology by
informal miners." This came directly from a memorandum by the President of
the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), one of
the World Bank's five lending institutions.

DECOIN says that the project was initially evaluated as having a
potentially "significant" impacts, requiring a rigorous environmental
assessment. However, the Bank allegedly did not meet these requirements
and violated its operational policies and procedures by: not consulting
with local communities, failing to take into account the impact of
releasing the information from the surveys, failing to assess the
capability of the Ecuadorian government to protect the reserves from an
invasion of miners and failing to conform with Ecuadorian laws.

Of major concern to DECOIN is the unavoidable snowballing effect of mining
development once mineral deposit data is given to the general
public. DECOIN was successful in fighting off Bishi Metal a subsidiary of
Japanese multinational conglomerate Mitsubishi Corporation in a similar
case, where because of the company's lack of concern for the community,
social injustice and environmental contamination occurred.

Much of the reserve area that will be surveyed under the PRODEMINCA project
is a watershed preserve that contains the headwaters of numerous rivers in
Ecuador. This is a major source of drinking water for many of the
communities downstream. Mining in these areas would contaminate these
waters and have a major impact on mangrove systems, shrimp farming, banana
plantations, and fishing along these rivers.

"The information still has not been published. And now, with the World
Bank accepting the recommendations of the Inspection Panel to investigate
further the PRODEMINCA case (on May 16), it is necessary to increase
pressure on the Minister (of the Environment) who might go ahead and
publish the information regardless of the historic decision by Bank
Management," said Carlos Zedillo president of DECOIN.

Recently, a law was sent to Congress for approval by the Secretary of
Energy, proposing that mining activities be declared a national priority in
Ecuador. Approval of this law would mean that other laws concerning the
protection and conservation of natural resources would be subordinate.

According to DECOIN, PRODEMINCA is specifically trying to give guarantees
for the investment of private capital in mining activities by modifying the
laws to favor transnational investment, expanding the exploration and
exploitation frontier area to 2 million acres (810,000 hectares) and
reforming to mining laws including the modification of Article 87 to permit
mining in protected areas.

SOURCES: pers. comm. Carlos Zedillo, president of DECOIN; "World Bank
Authorizes and Inspection Panel Investigation", by the World Bank, May 16,
2000; "Report and Recommendation on Request for Inspection - Loan
#3566-EC", by The World Bank Inspection Panel, May 2000.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DIARY: Olive oil power plants could give Opec the slip

It was in use before a written language was invented. Today it is being
studied as a possible means of staving off ailments ranging from heart
attacks and bowel cancer to gallstones. It has been used to provide heating
and lighting for centuries. Even the trendiest of today's celebrity chefs
does not disdain to slosh it around.

Olive oil, the golden liquid on which commercial empires, to say nothing of
the Mediterranean diet, have been built, is now about to get yet another use.

Endesa, one of Spain's biggest utilities, has announced plans to build two
olive oil-fired power stations at a cost of almost US$40 million. Well, the
fuel is not quite olive oil. It's the solid residue - known in the trade as
orujo - left after every drop of oil has been pressed from the fruit.

At a time when the other stuff, which a much less attractive name (crude
oil), is drilled out of the ground in places such as Colombia, Nigeria, the
North Sea, the Middle East and some of the less hospitable parts of Russia
is heading for US$30 a barrel, Endesa's initiative has obvious commercial
potential.

It is environmentally friendly, too. The fibrous mass that is orujo has a
high thermal value when burnt, but is otherwise tricky for olive
growers to get rid off.

Spain is handily placed as a provider of orujo. It has nearly 200 million
olive trees, making it the world's largest producer of olive oil - and
consequently of fuel for the new power plants that will be built in Jaen
and Ciudad Real. This is the heart of Spain's olive-growing region, and
when the power plants come into operation in the second half of next year,
they will produce 32 megawatts, or enough power to supply 100,000 people.
They will be the first power stations in the world to use olive residues to
generate electricity.

If the technology turns out to be a commercial success Spain's neighbors -
all olive oil producers - could well be tempted to follow
Endesa's lead.

That could give Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) a
whole new meaning. Instead, it might find itself reinvented to become the
Olive Producers Electricity Cooperative. Now that would give them something
to think about, be it in Aberdeen or Azerbaijan.

SOURCES: Excerpted from the article "Olive oil power plants could give Opec
the slip", by Mark Milner, The Guardian - Britain, March 16, 2000.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Write to Ecuador's Ministry of the Environment and demand
that he not release the Mineralogical Survey Information

Please send faxes or emails to Rodolfo Rendon Blacio, Ecuador’s Minister of
the Environment, expressing concern or outrage over the government's
intention to release the results of the PRODEMINCA project (see: Ecuadorian
NGO Pulls World Bank in to Inspect Violation of Policies). Please
redistribute the attached letter to as many people and organizations as
possible.

DECOIN requests that you also send us a copy of your letter to: decoin@...

Mr. Rodolfo Rendon Blacio
Minister of the Environment
Quito, Ecuador
TEL: + 593 2 563 487/486/427/429/430
Fax: 593 2 565 809
EMAIL: rrendon@...
(note: faxes are much more efficient)

Sample Letter:

Mr. Rodolfo Rendon Blacio
Ministry of the Environment
Quito, Ecuador

Fax: 593 2 565 809
EMAIL: rrendon@...

Dear Mr. Rendon Blacio,

I wish to express my extreme concern regarding serious threats to the
scarce remaining biodiversity of Ecuador by recent mining prospecting
activities in various protected areas as part of a recent World Bank funded
project called PRODMEINCA. If the Ecuadorian government releases the
results of this survey, it will continues to allow and encourage
unsustainable development in regions of biological magnificence and be
responsible for hastening the extinction of numerous species.

You must also be highly aware of the potential revenue gained from
ecologically sustainable activities such as eco-tourism. These industries
would be severely compromised by any infringement in these areas and by the
negative impact on Ecuador's reputation as a country that values and
protects its unique natural areas.

The resistance of local communities against mining activities in native
forests in Ecuador has gained international attention. There is a global
consensus that supports their opinion that sustainable development options
such as eco-tourism are vastly superior to exploitative,
polluting and unsustainable activities such as mining.

Please act for the long-term ecological and social integrity of Ecuador and
withhold from public view information that can only result in destructive,
polluting and unsustainable development.

Yours sincerely,
(please sign your name and organizational affiliation if applicable)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
**Hotspots**

AUSTRALIA: Kelian community representatives from Indonesia, Australian
activists and miners from New South Wales and Queensland dominated
RioTinto's annual shareholder meeting in Brisbane, Queensland, addressing
the company's human rights abuses and their anti-union stance. Mohammed
Ramli from Mining Advocacy Network in Indonesia (JATAM) accused the company
of deliberately delaying negotiations over compensation to Kelian
landowners to avoid resolving the issues of land compensation, destruction
of property and human rights before the end of the company's three-year
lease. Negotiations between the community and the company broke down last
month after the company violated an agreement not to involve government
officials or publicize the negotiations. The Kelian community as of May 24
was blockading the minesite. RioTinto chairman Sir Robert Wilson blamed the
Indonesian military for arrests and shootings, and claimed that the company
was now in the process of drawing up guidelines on human rights for use in
various countries where the company operates. Meanwhile, union leaders
called for talks after the company, during the meeting, recognized their
right to collective bargain. (Joyo Indonesia News, May 24, 2000)

CHINA: China has announced that it will end complete state-control over
oil imports and allow at least 20% of its demand to be filled by outside
oil companies. The move is a part of a bilateral agreement by China and the
European Union to remove the last barriers to China's entry into the World
Trade Organization (WTO). The percentage is set to increase with time. BP
Amoco, which is the largest foreign investor in China through its 20%
holding in PetroChina, praised the agreement. China currently imports
around 1.6 million barrels of oil a day. That number could rise to around 8
million barrels a day by 2020. China has bought all of its crude oil and
oil product imports from the Far East and the Gulf through the China
National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and Sinochem, the two state oil
groups. According to the Financial Times, there has also been a thriving
trade in smuggled crude oil and oil products from Hong Kong, although the
Chinese government has cracked down on this in recent years. (Financial
Times, May 19. 2000)

GERMANY: Save the Elbe a German environmental organization submitted a
proposal at Northgerman Affinery's (Affi) annual shareholder's meeting on
April, 4, 2000 asking that Affi join in an initiative to close the Ok Tedi
copper mine operated by BHP in Papua New Guinea. Affi runs a copper
smelter in Hamburg, Germany where 16% or 58,000 tons of concentrated ore
from Ok Tedi is processed. The proposal also asked that the company donate
1% of their profits to a compensation fund for the communities affected in
the Ok-Tedi region after the closure of the mine. The company's board
rejected the proposal, claiming that according to a World Bank report, the
mine is in compliance of environmental standards. However, the World Bank's
produced a report in March 2000 calling for BHP to shut down the mine
because of the massive damage it has caused to the land and rivers. (The
"Norddeutsche Affinerie" and its Ore From Ok-Tedi River", Press Release,
Save the Elbe, Germany, April, 2000)

INDIA: Unocal has announced that it will pull out of a controversial
project to build an oil port in Maroli, in the state of Gujarat. The
company has partnered with Indian firm NATELCO in the US$300 million
project. A local group, Kinara Bachao Sangharsh Samiti (Committee for the
Struggle to Save the Coast), has been protesting the proposed
UNOCAL-NATELCO project since March 1999. According to the Kinara Bachao
Sangharsh Samiti, the project would destroy the fishing community as well
the farming and agriculture communities in the ecologically fragile zone.
On April 8, 2000, local police officials arrested and severely beat
activists opposed to the Maroli port project. As a result of the beatings
Col. Pratap Save, a leader of the movement opposed to the port, died on
April 20, 2000 from a brain hemorrhage. Unocal press statements claim that
the company pulled out on March 14, 2000, three weeks before the violent
crackdown on activists opposed to the port project. Unocal is still active
in other projects in India, mainly in oil and gas exploration and
development. Unocal is under intense attack from international human
rights groups for knowingly using forced labor in the construction of the
Yadana and Yetagun gas pipelines in neighboring Burma. (Press Release,
Transnational Resource and Action Center, May 26, 2000)

KENYA: Over 1,000 residents of a titanium mining area, in Kenya's Kwale
district, have said that they will sue the government if it approves an
environmental impact assessment report handed in early May to natural
resources minister Jackson Kalweo. Canada-based Tiomin Incorporated with
funding from the World Bank plans to strip mine for titanium in five spots
along the Kenyan coast. Community leader, Iddi Benga, said that the
community was not consulted during the environmental impact study. An
Independent study done by Moi University based in Kenya reported that the
company consulted only with local chiefs when it carried out the study and
relied heavily on a few selected members and confirms that the concerns of
other community members were ignored. Community members refused to endorse
the environmental assessment study produced by Tiomin at a special district
development committee meeting and accused the company of failing to locally
advertise the study and of bringing in outside consultants. (Panafrican
News Agency, May 22, 2000)

NEW ZEALAND: Conservation Minister Sandra Lee has rejected applications for
access to mine hundreds of millions of dollars worth of gold beneath two
ecological areas on the west coast of the country. The decision has
shattered the West Coast Commercial Gold Miners' Association, which says
increasing uncertainty over access to Crown land is jeopardizing the whole
industry. The declined applications were to mine 20 acres (8 hectares) in
the Maruia Valley, and 240 acres (97 hectares) at Card Creek, southeast of
Greymouth. Together, they were expected to create up to 58 jobs. Lee said
that although parasites had affected about 20 percent of the trees, the
Department of Conservation concluded that was part of the natural life
cycle of the forest "and not a factor in favor of allowing mining access."
(New Zealand News from The Press, May 11, 2000)

NIGERIA: An explosion in the community in the Etiema community has killed
six people and injured nearly 20. The explosion occurred when as members
of the community were cleaning up an oil spilled from a pipeline owned by
the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NOAC). The company had enlisted about 42
people from the community to help in cleaning up the spill but gave them
faulty pumping equipment to use. Youths from the community report that
they had asked that a dysfunctional pumping machine be removed, but NAOC
officials refused, made only minor repairs and the machines continued to be
used. There were almost 28 persons inside a pit when the machine sparked
and caused an explosion releasing blue fire that ignited the whole pit and
the youths whose clothes were soaked in crude, literally roasting them
alive. Company officials proceeded to intimidate the community by bringing
in a boatload of armed police officers rather than relief supplies. They
have refused to consult with the community about the accident. Traditional
ruler, Chief J.H.S.Ebifate said, "We want Agip to come and kill all of us
because we will not allow them to do anything here without first coming to
an agreement." (ERA Field Report #61 "# 61, Environmental Rights Action,
May 18, 2000)

RUSSIA: The Russian government has cut the State Committee on Ecology
which effectively will do away with the only government agency that had any
regulatory power over the environment. The former Committee's
responsibilities will be folded into the Ministry of Natural Resources, an
agency that has been responsible for facilitating the extraction of the
country's large reserves of oil, gas, and minerals. The Russian Federal
Forest Service was also abolished and folded into the Ministry of Natural
Resources. The State Committee on Ecology was responsible for carrying out
environmental inspections and environmental impact reviews and enforcing
the country's environmental laws. It is unclear how these tasks will be
handled by the Ministry of Natural Resources, which has usually supported
the most environmentally destructive natural resource projects in Russia.
Victor Danilov-Danilyan, chair of the State Committee on Ecology, called
the decision an absurd step that does not comply with the spirit or the
letter of Russian law.
(Press Release, Pacific Environment and Resources Center, May 23, 2000)

UNITED STATES:

California - The right to proceed has been granted to plaintiffs in a court
case against US-based oil company Chevron for human rights violations and
attacks on Nigerian citizens in Nigeria. The ruling comes shortly after an
April 7 ruling by the court denying Chevron's request to have the case
moved to Nigeria. The suit was filed from two attacks on Nigerian citizens
one in January 1999, where two villages were attacked and burned to the
ground and 7-year-old girl was shot as she waved at one of the helicopters.
The second attack occurred in May, 1998 when several Nigerians were shot,
two were killed and two were tortured for conducting a peaceful protest on
one of Chevron's offshore oil platforms. Chevron-leased helicopters and
boats and in both instances accompanied the Nigerian military forces.
Plaintiffs are now able to pursue their case under well-established
precedents that allow claims in U.S. courts for human rights violations
such as summary execution and torture. The judge ordered a further
scheduling hearing for June 16, 2000. (Press Release, McGlashan & Sarrail,
May 12, 2000)

Idaho- State and federal government officials have ordered US-based Hecla
mining company to empty a 500 million gallon tailings pond contaminated
with cyanide. The pond was created next to the Grouse Creek Mine in
Central Idaho near Couer d' Alene and is leaking toxic cyanide since 1994
into Jordan Creek, a spawning stream and nursery for endangered salmon and
bull trout and a tributary to the Salmon River. Salmon River an endangered
salmon habitat. The mine was forced to close just two years after it
opened because of low levels of gold causing the company a US$97 million
loss. Hecla estimates that it will cost US$23 million to drain the tailings
pond and treat the water to levels the company can discharge into a Salmon
River tributary. The 109-year-old mining company is currently being sued
over pollution in the Coeur d'Alene Basin and is experiencing a nine-year
string of losses. Officials fear that the pond could overflow during a
storm and send a deadly wave of water into the Salmon River. (The Spokesman
Review, May 22, 2000)

Texas - Shareholder, citizen groups and Jane Dale Owen, the granddaughter
of a founder of Humble Oil - Exxon's largest domestic asset organized a
proxy solicitation packet to nearly 1,800 stockholders with control over
58% of ExxonMobil¹s shares just before their annual shareholders meeting on
May 31, 2000. This proxy statement is meant to urge support for four
environmental and social resolutions, which address renewable energy, the
company's investment in the Chad-Cameroon pipeline, their proposed drilling
project in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in the US state of Alaska,
and a possible resolution that will asks the company to create a review
committee to examine the possibility of linking social and environmental
concerns to executive compensation. The mailing was put together by
US-based groups, Campaign ExxonMobil, US Public Interest Research Group,
and Ozone Action. The groups note that oil company shareholders are
becoming more receptive to arguments for reducing risk and diversifying
energy sources. Last month, a resolution calling on BP Amoco to direct
capital intended drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge towards
renewable energy earned more than 13% of shareholders' votes. This
represents an unusually high level of support for a shareholder proposal
addressing environmental issues. (Press Release, Campaign ExxonMobil, May
11, 2000 - http://www.campaignexxonmobil.org)

West Virginia - The State Environmental Quality Board has ruled that
Existing coal mines, chemical plants and steel mills will be exempt from a
rule to protect West Virginia streams from pollution. The rule - called an
anti-degradation plan developed in 1995- will apply only to new and
expanded facilities. The policy is intended to prohibit activities that
degrade streams to the point that various uses, such as fishing, drinking
and swimming, are impossible. Officials from the chemical, coal and other
industries aggressively lobbied the board. During the final review of an
implementation plan that took five years to write, industry lobbyists
outnumbered citizen representatives about 7-1. (West Virginia Gazette, May
12, 2000)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
VITAL STATISTICS: Toxic Chemical Discharges from the Gold Mining Industry

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) is an annual report of toxic chemical
pollution released into the environment by businesses throughout the United
States. The report is required by the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA), whose mission is to protect human health and safeguard the natural
environment. It is available so other levels of government and the public
can analyze industries' “progress toward reducing pollution”. It also
allows the general public to monitor contamination coming from facilities
located near residential communities.

Because of an accidental toxic gas release from a Union Carbide chemical
plant in Bhopal, that killed 2,500 people India, in 1984, the EPA require
companies to report their toxic emissions. More than 30 states now have
laws that provide workers and residents with access to information about
hazardous substances in their workplaces and communities.

The TRI results can be used discover types and amounts of toxic chemicals
released in or near their neighborhoods. Communities in the U.S. can use
the data to pressure facilities to use pollution prevention, minimize
waste, and if necessary to close down facilities.

The EPA has recently added seven industrial sectors to the list of over
twenty that must report toxic releases, under the community right-to-know
program. They include metal mining, coal mining, electric utilities (those
that use coal and oil as fuel), and petroleum bulk terminals, while oil and
gas production remains exempt from the Toxic Release Inventory reporting.

Top 25 Mines with the Most Toxic Emissions
Following is a list of the largest toxic releases in the metal mining
industry in 1998 as reported in the Environmental Protection Agency’s
Toxic Release Inventory. The mine’s name is followed by the pounds of
toxic waste released.

1. Kennecott Utah Copper Mine, Salt Lake, Utah, 405 million.
2. Barrick Goldstrike Mines Inc., Elko and Eureka counties, Nevada, 398
million.
3. Asarco Inc., Pima, Ariz., 336 million.
4. Newmont Mining Corp., Twin Creeks Mine, Humboldt County, 269 million.
5. Red Dog, Northwest Arctic, Alaska, 250 million.
6. Chino Mines Co., Grant, N.M., 194 million.
7. BHP Copper Robinson, White Pine County, closed after 1998, 168 million.
8. Phelps Dodge Morenci Inc., Greelee, Ariz., 142 million.
9. Cyprus Sierrita Corp., Pima, Ariz., 130 million.
10. Cyprus Miami Mining Corp., Gila, Ariz., 123 million.
12. Echo Bay Mines Ltd., McCoy/Cove Mine, Lander County, 112 million.
13. Newmont’s Carlin South Area, Eureka County,107 million.
15. Newmont’s Lone Tree Mine, Valmy, 53 million.
18. Placer Dome Inc.’s Getchell Mine, stopped mining and milling later,
Humboldt County, 44 million.
20. Cortez Gold Mines, Pipeline Mine, Lander County, 36 million.
24. Newmont’s Carlin North Area, Eureka County, 24 million.

Things to Note About the Mining Industry Toxic Releases in 1998.
*Total Toxic Releases by all 27 Industries Reporting: 7.3 billion pounds
(This is triple the amount of releases reported in 1997).
*Metal Mining: 3.5 billion pounds (48% of the total toxic releases reported)
*Gold Mining: 1.23 billion pounds (16% of total toxic releases)
Air: 2 million pounds
Surface Water: 446,734 pounds
Land: 1.2 billion pounds
*Coal Mining: 13.3 million pounds (.18% of total toxic releases)
*Mining and Electric Power represent 2/3 of the 7.3 billion pounds of
toxins released.
*Nevada released approximately 1.3 billion pounds of toxins in 1998,
according to the state reports. That exceeds the toxins reported by all
other reporting industries in the top seven polluting states of 1997, combined.
*One Nevada mine reported releasing over 80,000 pounds of mercury, with
over 9,000 pounds of mercury released directly into the air.
*More than 1/3 of the toxic chemicals released by mining operations were in
the form of hazardous waste, sent off-site for disposal.
*94% of the reported releases from all facilities were emitted to the air,
land, water or underground wells at the reporting site.

Although these numbers represent a certain amount of chemicals emitted,
they do not represent the extent of the environmental impacts caused from
the overall mining process. Much of the ecological damage that occurs
near a minesite is due to unavoidable natural reactions of the earth during
mining process.

More 1998 Toxic Release Inventory data and background information on the
TRI program are available at http://www.epa.gov/tri/tri98/

SOURCES: Toxic Release Inventory, U.S. EPA website: www.epa.gov; “Mining
and Electric Industries Lead U.S. Toxic Releases”, by Cat Lazaroff.
Environment News Service. May 12, 2000; “Toxic Release Leaders” by
Associated Press, May 16, 2000.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

COMMUNITY PIPELINE

Contacts:

EarthRights International
U.S East Coast Office
2012 Massachusetts Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20036
TEL: +1 (202) 466-5188
FAX: +1 (202) 466-5189
EMAIL: eri@...

U.S. West Coast Office
4330 Dayton Ave. N.
Seattle, WA 98103
Tel/Fax: (206) 547-2028
EMAIL: bapple@...

Southeast Asia Office
P.O. Box 12
Lard Phrao Junction
Bangkok 10901, Thailand
TEL/FAX: 66 2 5122051
EMAIL:earth@...
WEBSITE: www.earthrights.org

Burma Forum of Los Angeles
8124 W. 3rd Street Suite 104
Los Angeles, CA 90048
Telephone (323) 653-4571
Fax (323) 653-4581
www.burmaforumla.org

Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia (WALHI)
Friends of the Earth Indonesia
Jl. Tegal Parang Utara No. 14
Jakarta 12790, INDONESIA
TEL: + 021-794-1672
FAX: + 021-794-1673
EMAIL: WALHI@...
WEBSITE: http://www.walhi.or.id/

DECOIN - Defensa y Conservacion Ecologica de Intag
Carlos Zorrilla
President
PO Box 144
Otavalo, Imbabura
Ecuador
TEL/FAX: +5936 648 593
EMAIL: decoin@..., intagcz@...
WEBSITE: http://www.decoin.org/whole.html

CONFERENCES:
*Widening Peoples' Choices: For a Just and Sustainable Future -

Sponsored by over 15 organizations, this teach-in is designed to use the
opportunity of the 2000 World Petroleum Congress (WPC) in Calgary, Alberta,
Canada on June 11-15 to expose the atrocities caused by the petroleum
industry globally and to discuss alternatives to the oil paradigm. This
will be a venue for people to learn about and discuss the reasons
for abandoning the Oil Paradigm, ways in which we can do so, and what a
Just and Sustainable future will look like. It will also be an opportunity
to organize and build community in Alberta and beyond.

The conference is divided into 3 themes:
1.The Oil Paradigm - Exposing the human rights and environmental atrocities
caused by the oil industry
2. The End of Oil - Making the necessary transition to appropriate and
sustainable energy sources
3. Creating a Just and Sustainable Future - Building the fundamental global
changes necessary for a participatory and equitable future.

WHERE: University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
WHEN: June 9-10, 2000
COST: Tickets are $15 or $10(students/low income).

To register, contact:
Darla Simpson
TEL: +1 780-433-9302 or +1 780-433-8808
EMAIL: darlasimpson@...

For more information, contact:
Karina Gregory
Environmental Resource Centre
TEL: +1 780-433-9302 or +1 780-436-2047
EMAIL:karina675@...

*The Urban Habitat Camp

Sponsored by US-based Youth for Environmental Sanity (YES!) the Urban
Habitat Camp is a grassroots leadership camp focused on issues of
environmental racism, social justice, urban life and how young people can
unite to stand up for just and healthy neighborhoods. The Urban Habitat
Camp will feature environmental justice education, experiential exercises,
discussion groups, videotapes, toxic tours, visits to urban community
gardens, and various forms of popular education to look critically and
deeply at the issues affecting cities and urban communities today. The
Urban Habitat Camp will also feature workshops and talks by renowned
activists and mentors dedicated to the struggle for justice and sanity,
such as Alice Walker and Tom Hayden.

WHERE/WHEN: San Francisco, California, USA August 6 ­ 13, 2000; Los
Angeles, California, USA July 15 ­ 22, 2000

For more information contact:
Brahm Ahmadi
Youth for Environmental Sanity
420 Bronco Rd.
Soquel, CA 95073
TEL: + 1 831-465-1097
EMAIL: motreb@...

PUBLICATIONS

*Total Denial Continues -

Published by EarthRights International, this report is a sequel to "Total
Denial" which was co-published with Southeast Asian Information Network
four years ago. "Total Denial Continued" builds on and exposes new evidence
of human rights abuses and evironmental problems caused by the construction
of the Yadana pipeline in the Tenassarim region of Burma. EarthRights
reports that in the past four years violence and forced labor have
continued in the region to the full knowledge of Unocal and Total - two oil
companies operating in the region. This report brings presents new facts
about the tragedies in the Tenassarim region and exposes further abuses
around the construction of a second pipeline called the Yetagun which was
financed and constructed by British Premier Oil.

To obtain a copy of the report, contact:

EarthRights International
U.S East Coast Office
2012 Massachusetts Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20036
TEL: +1 (202) 466-5188
FAX: +1 (202) 466-5189
EMAIL: eri@...
A electronic version of the report can be found at:
http://www.earthrights.org/our_publication/TD2/index.html

*In Harm's Way -

Published by US-Based The Chemical Connection: A Public Network of Texans
Sensitive to Chemicals, this report exposes the connection between many
chemicals used by people and industry and learning disabilities in
children. Some of the report's findings include: An epidemic of
developmental, learning and behavioral disabilities has become evident
among children. Animal and human studies demonstrate that many chemicals
commonly encountered in industry and the home are developmental
neurotoxicants that can contribute to developmental, learning, and
behavioral disabilities.

To obtain a copy of the report, contact:

The Chemical Connection: A Public Network of Texans Sensitive to Chemicals
310 Thomas Oaks Dr.
Wimberley, TX 78676
United States
TEL: 1 512-847-9245
FAX: + 512-338-1190
EMAIL: hesolutions@...
WEBSITE: http://www.austin360.com/community/groups/vanguard/
or
P. O. Box 26152,
Austin, TX 78755
TEL:+1 512-338-1108
The full report is available at http://www.preventingharm.org/.

WEBSITES:

*Eco-Portal at http://www.Eco-Portal.com/ -

Produced and designed by Ecological Enterprises, this search engine enables
users to search the entire content of thousands of the "best" environmental
Internet sites as well as being able to search more narrowly on specific
environmental topics, which has been operational for some time. Eco-Portal
indexes thousands of reviewed environmental Internet sources to allow
full-text searching of their combined content. Search queries can search
all the sites at one time, or restrict your search to a specific topic for
even better results. Portal searches are currently available for the topics
of biodiversity, climate/energy, eco-news, forests, land use/sprawl,
oceans, ozone layer, rainforests, temperate forests, and water.

*Disclaimer: Drillbits & Tailings does not extensively review any of the
resources published in Community Pipeline. We only pass on the suggestion
for our readers to evaluate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Drillbits & Tailings is the bi-monthly mining, oil and gas update published
by Project Underground online in English and Spanish. Back-issues are
archived on our web site <http://www.moles.org>. We welcome submissions or
news items, however we cannot offer remuneration.

Thanks to the following volunteers who made this edition possible: Jeffrey
Myers, Nick Parker, and Erin Schaad.

Subscriptions to D&T are US$500 corporation; US$60 Institution; US$25
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Feel free to cross-post anything in D&T. Articles in D&T that are not
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Project Underground
Supporting the human rights of communities resisting mining and oil
exploitation
1916A Martin Luther King Jr Way
Berkeley, CA 94703
TEL: +1 510 705 8981
FAX: +1 510 705 8983
EMAIL: project_underground@...
WEBSITE: http://www.moles.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Drillbits & Tailings
Volume 5, Number 8
May 31, 2000
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Catherine Baldi
Information Coordinator
Project Underground
1916A MLK Jr. Way
Berkeley, CA 94704
+1 510-705-8981 TEL
+1 510-705-8983 FAX
http://www.moles.org
cbaldi@...
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