Μιχάλης Τρεμόπουλος

The river Topolniza in Sredna Gora Mountain, Bulgaria, is passing near the facilities of the gold mine Chelopech, which is owned by Dundee Precious Metals. Pollution of the river with nitrite nitrogen and sulphate ions coming from the tailing pond of the mine has been recorded and reported. The electrical conductivity of the waters coming from the tailing pond to the river and their pH amplitude are very high. This is sign for heavy metals in the waters. The ore of the mine contains high concentration of arsenic.

The river Medetska in Sredna Gora Mountain, Bulgaria, is passing near the facilities of the closed state-owned cooper mine MOK Medet. Pollution of the river with cooper and manganese coming from the closed mine has been recorded and reported. These metals are dangerous for river biodiversity and public health.

According to the Regional Inspectorate of the Ministry of Environment and Waters, Plovdiv, Bulgaria, on 25 November 2008 the amount of lead in the River Chepelarska was 0.48mg/l, which is 9.6 times higher than the allowed amount (0.05mg/l). Even dead fish have started to appear along the river bed. The main dangers to human health after such disasters are related to soil pollution in fertile territories that may be flooded or irrigated with poisonous water and the pollution of underground waters used for drinking.

The Bulgarian Government has granted permission to the firm Gorubso Kardjali AD for a gold extraction installation using cyanide leaching technology. The installation had already been constructed without permission and it is located less than 1.000 meters from residential buildings and the city of Kardjali. Cyanide will pollute Arda River, and will cause transboundary pollution to Turkey and Greece, posing dangerous threats for public health.  

Οι Οικολόγοι Πράσινοι αναδεικνύουν στο Ευρωκοινοβούλιο το θέμα της χρήσης κυανίου στα χρυσωρυχεία της Βουλγαρίας.

Στις 12 Νοεμβρίου 2009 ο Μιχάλης Τρεμόπουλος κατέθεσε ερώτηση προς την Ευρωπαϊκή Επιτροπή για το αν αυτή συμμερίζεται την ανάγκη απαγόρευσης της μεταλλουργίας που βασίζεται στην κυάνωση σε όλες της χώρες της Ένωσης και για το αν τα επενδυτικά σχέδια σε Βουλγαρία και Ελλάδα συνάδουν με την Οδηγία 2006/21 για τη διαχείριση των αποβλήτων της εξορυκτικής βιομηχανίας. Διαβάστε τη σχετική ανακοίνωση.

Στις 20 Ιανουαρίου και σε συνεργασία με περιβαλλοντική ΜΚΟ της Βουλγαρίας, κατέθεσε 5 ερωτήσεις (Διαβάστε 1, 2, 3, 4, 5) για ισάριθμα χρυσωρυχεία στη Βουλγαρία τα οποία απειλούν με ρύπανση και ποτάμια που καταλήγουν στην Ελλάδα.

Στις 29 Ιανουαρίου πργαματοποιήθηκε στη Βουδαπέστη Ημερίδα με θέμα "Απαγορεύοντας το κυάνιο χωρίς σύνορα". Διαβάστε παρακάτω (στα αγγλικά) το χαιρετισμό που έστειλε ο Μ. Τρεμόπουλος.

Brussels, 29-1-2010 

Dear friends of Fenntarthatóság Felé Egyesület (Association Towards Sustainability) and MTVSZ/Friends of the Earth Hungary,  

I would like to express my full support for the aims of the Conference “Banning cyanide without borders” that you organise on 1^st February 2010, which is the 10th anniversary of the Baia Mare cyanide spill and a Memorial Day of the Wildlife of River Tisza.  

I strongly agree with and promote such initiatives that oppose the use of cyanide in gold mining, through my questions and activities within the European Parliament and the group of The Greens/EFA. A major example is a recent question entitled “Need for a European ban on metallurgy using cyanide leaching” that has not been answered by the Commission yet, but we expect it to happen soon.  

Local anti-cyanide initiatives seem to multiply these recent years in many European countries, including Greece, Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary, indicating from one hand an attack of “gold investors” interests without environmental reservations, but form the other hand a much promising awakening of the civil society in countries of the European south and east.  

Having being myself an active member of the environmental and ecological movement in Greece for more than 30 years, I understand the difficulties, the isolation and the disappointment that many people participating in these local movements often feel. However, the hope lies in the networking of these initiatives and I am willing to support this networking process that seems to begin or be promoted by your Conference.  

Having all the above in mind, I would be very glad if I could be of service for your aims, and I would like to propose you to continue our communication and coordinate our efforts towards the common aim of “Banning cyanide without borders”.  

I would be grateful if you could share with me the outcomes of the conference and consider my willingness to realise activities in Greece within the framework of a common campaign.  

Best regards, 

Ανησυχία προκαλεί η ταχεία επέκταση της επεξεργασίας μεταλλευμάτων χρυσού μέσω εκχύλισης με κυάνιο σε χώρες της Αν. και ΝΑ Ευρώπης (Ουγγαρία, Σλοβακία, Ρουμανία, Βουλγαρία, Ελλάδα). Σοβαρές περιβαλλοντικές καταστροφές έχουν συμβεί σε τέτοιες εγκαταστάσεις, όπως στη BaiaMare της Ρουμανίας το 2000. Ευρωπαϊκές χώρες όπως η Γερμανία και η Τσεχία έχουν ήδη απαγορεύσει τη μεταλλουργία αυτού του τύπου(1] ενώ στην Ουγγαρία και στη Ρουμανία υπάρχουν πρωτοβουλίες πίεσης για την υιοθέτηση νομοθεσίας για μια παρόμοια απαγόρευση([2]).