The Guyana Government has begun consultations with key stakeholders in the mining industry as efforts are being made to officially put in place an extensive code of conduct aimed at holding miners accountable for unsafe operations and the destruction of the environment.
Today, the Natural Resources Ministry hosted consultations at the Marriott hotel with miners and other stakeholders.
Minister within the Ministry of Natural Resources Simona Broomes, in her address to attendees, stated clearly that the government intends to toughen its stance against delinquent miners who are bent on breaking the laws regarding mining in Guyana.
Claiming that the mining sector had been run like the “Wild West” for some time now, she urged participants to get themselves familiar with the codes.
The codes constitute the do’s and don’ts of mining; aimed at mitigating environmental damage mining causes.
Legal Advisor to the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, Kara Duff Yehudah, explained that the codes were a simplified version of the Mining Amendment Act of 2005.
Following the opening ceremony, Broomes subsequently clarified that the government would work with miners unfamiliar with the law.
She noted that sensitisation would be carried out; after which any miner caught breaking the law could not claim ignorance as an excuse.
