Gold Mining Companies Dumped Their Waste Water Into Orkhon River After Rain

(Translated into English by Odnoo)

People and cattle living along Orkhon river are near to face great danger that once happened to Khongor soum people and their cattle.

13 July, 2009 I headed to the ULAAN TSUTGALAN , waterfall, one of the beautiful sightseeing, which is located 20 km North west from Bat-Ulziit soum, Uvurkhangai aimag.

While I was driving along Orkhon river on my way to the waterfall, it looked very muddy and dirty but I heard it had been raining recently so I believe it must be the rain water that changed the color of the water.

When I almost reached the waterfall I saw the river flowing in yellow brown color and became very narrow. I asked the family I am staying with, they said there are two gold mining companies at the headwater of Orkhon river and these companies opened their dam filled with waste water from gold mining two days ago right after rain. Locals said that they usually dump waste water contaminated with mercury and cynnade that used for extract gold.

These cold mining companies are located 80 km from the waterfall where I was staying. It was obvious that they dumped great amount of waste water because the river water was poisoned this far and this bad.

It is hard to believe that animals could survive in this water conditions. When I asked the locals how often does it happen? They said every summer gold mining companies open their dam from three years now.

Orkhon river water was poisoned with same reason three times and last year the color of the river was white like a yogurt. This is the first time for this year. Orkhon river was poisoned three times. Although we don’t know how many times they dump their waste with smaller amount.

There are more people and livestock around Orkhon river compare to other areas because it is located in the central part of Monoglia. It is even hard to think how these families around Orkhon river deal with the situation who is drinking from Orkhon river and who don’t have any other water sources to drink from. It is hard to believe that you are watching this horrible thing and I thought what a man kind who have mind to done these horrible things.

I have visited several herders families to have a talk, who are living along the river since I have traveled this far.

Herdersman Baadai: Mongol Gazar and Altan Dornod, gold mining companies are mining gold at the beginning of Orkhon river. Apart from these two companies, there are also other gold miners who mine gold manually. One of our neighbors said that they saw dead fishes lying at the side of Orkhon river.

A.Davaasuren, National park arranger: People from Professional Inspection Agency came to take a sample of the river water to be tested. They do this every year, but they never bring the test result and never mention about it again.

The cold mining companies never say they are guilty, they say we didn’t open our dam. Altan Dornod, a mining company was closed down but it is still mining for gold illegally said Davaasuren.

- Exactly what day and what time Orkhon river became like this?

14.00 pm, 13 July, 2009 color of the river has changed. It can’t be flood because it didn’t rain that much, said the locals and the park ranger.
It is impossible to have complete test on water in Mongolia so couldn’t give the water sample which I took from the river. You have to send it to Japan to have a complete water test.

It costs a lot of money to only test the heavy metals in the water. For this case 4 or 5 kinds of heavy metal tests should be carried out in order to find out how much the river has been poisoned.

It would cost me too expensive (ordinary citizen journalist, who has deep concerns about environmental destruction and water pollution) 60 thousand MNT or 45$ for only one heavy metal test in the water which I brought it all the way to Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia and couldn’t find any reliable organization and laboratory.

The professional inspectors who come here to take sample from the river every year with great scandal should announce the result to the public.