To People Concerned About Sulfide Mining in Wisconsin We are contacting you to invite you, and any groups that may be interested, to join the Wisconsin Campaign to Ban Cyanide in Mining. The recent cyanide disasters at mines in Europe prompted groups in Wisconsin to call for a ban on cyanide in mining in February, 2000. Legislation will be introduced in the upcoming legislative session. Like the Mining Moratorium Campaign, the Wisconsin Campaign to Ban Cyanide will ask candidates to pledge their support and ask groups and local governments to pass resolutions supporting a ban on cyanide in mining. If your group would like to be listed as a part of the Campaign, please contact: WISCONSIN CAMPAIGN TO BAN CYANIDE IN MINING (CBCM) Wolf Watershed Educational Project c/o Midwest Treaty Network 731 State Street Madison WI 53703 USA Hotline (800) 445-8615 Tel/Fax (608) 246-2256 E-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web http://www.alphacdc.com/treaty/cyanide.html We have enclosed the information and a weblink to the petition the campaign will be sending to groups. Thank you! Wisconsin Campaign to Ban Cyanide in Mining *******Please print off, save, post and circulate********* WHAT YOU CAN DO TO BAN CYANIDE IN MINING The Wisconsin Campaign to Ban Cyanide in Mining invites all community groups and local governments to join in the effort to protect our environment from the threat of a cyanide disaster. Spills that we have seen in other countries can and have occurred here in the U.S. The Crandon mine plans to use up to 20 tons a month of sodium cyanide, which would be shipped in to the mine site on northern Wisconsin roads. No matter what processing method is used at the mine site, we cannot risk the release of even tiny amounts of cyanide into our waterways and fisheries. After the Winter 2000 cyanide disaster in Europe, five Wisconsin groups--the Wolf Watershed Educational Project/Midwest Treaty Network, Mining Impact Coalition, Wisconsin Resources Protection Council, Northern Thunder, and Wisconsin's Environmental Decade--called for a ban on cyanide in Wisconsin mines. Legislation will be introduced into the next session of the Wisconsin Legislature to prohibit the use of cyanide in mining--based on similar efforts in Montana, Colorado, and the Australian state of New South Wales. NOW is the time to begin to support this campaign, and make it a top issue in the Fall election !!! For more background information, see the factsheet below, or http://www.alphacdc.com/treaty/cyanide.html 1. PETITON to Ban Cyanide in Mining Print off the PETITION to ban cyanide in mining at http://www.alphacdc.com/treaty/petition.html and get as many signatures as you can from your group, friends, and family, and at events such as fairs, powwows, concerts, etc. Print off and distribute the factsheet at the end of this message. Send completed petitions to the the Wolf Watershed Educational Project, c/o Midwest Treaty Network, 731 State St., Madison WI 53703. 2. Pledge Campaign for Candidates Demand that your State Assembly and Senate CANDIDATES (both incumbents and challengers) pledge to support a prohibition on cyanide in mining: "I hereby pledge to support and vote in favor of legislation to prohibit the use of all cyanide in Wisconsin mines and metallic ore processing facilities." 3. Pass a GROUP RESOLUTION in your environmental organization, rod & gun club, union, church, fishing group, student group, Hazmat team, etc. (and any other community groups) for a cyanide ban in mining. **You can also simply respond to this letter and ask that your group be signed on to the Campaign.** All groups that passed resolutions for the 1998 mining moratorium bill should sign on to the new campaign as one way to potentially slow or stop the Crandon mine and other possible mines. Take the wording from the local government resolution below, and please send copies to the Wolf Watershed Educational Project. 4. Make a Contribution Make a tax-deductible CONTRIBUTION to "MTN/PC Foundation" and send it to: Wolf Watershed Educational Project (WWEP), c/o Midwest Treaty Network, 731 State St., Madison WI 53703. 5. Share Information Help the Campaign GATHER DATA about cyanide in mining. Send the Campaign any information you have -- newspaper clippings, emails, webpage links, organization contact information -- about problems with cyanide in mining and groups in other countries and states that are working to ban cyanide in mining. 6. Local Government Resolution Have your local village, township, and county governments pass the following LOCAL GOVERNMENT RESOLUTION supporting a prohibition on the use of cyanide in Wisconsin mines, and send a copy to the WWEP. If you are a tribal member, ask your representatives to introduce a similar resolution in your tribal council. Sample Resolution for Local (Village, Town, County, etc) Governments ROLL CALL ___________________ Board (County, Town, Village etc.), WISCONSIN Session Date Resolution No. First Reading: Date Second Reading: Date RESOLUTION SUPPORTING A PROHIBITION ON THE USE OF CYANIDE IN WISCONSIN MINES WHEREAS mining companies are increasingly using cyanide to extract gold, silver, copper, zinc, and other metals from metallic ore; and, WHEREAS the proposed Crandon zinc-copper mine near the Wolf River would use as much as 18 to 20 tons of sodium cyanide each month during its operation; and Wisconsin is known to contain other gold deposits that would likely require cyanide for processing; and, WHEREAS cyanide poses serious environmental risks--from transportation on our roadways, from storage and use at the proposed Crandon mine site, and from residuals disposed in waste dumps; and, WHEREAS cyanide is highly toxic, with tiny traces fatal to human beings, fish and wildlife, and acts as a powerful solvent that can release other toxins; and, WHEREAS cyanide has been the cause of recent environmental disasters at U.S. mines (in Colorado, Nevada, Montana, Idaho, California, South Dakota, and South Carolina), and at many foreign mines (such as in Romania, Guyana, Canada, Kyrgyzstan, and Papua New Guinea), resulting in massive fish kills and contaminated drinking water; and, WHEREAS in 1998, Montana voters banned cyanide for mining, and a similar ban initiative is underway in Colorado; and, WHEREAS Wisconsin must have the strongest mining laws in the nation in order to protect our abundance of clean water, NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED the (Town, Village, County, etc.) of ____________________________________ supports a prohibition on the use of cyanide reagents in Wisconsin mines and metallic ore processing facilities. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Wisconsin State Legislature is urged to pass legislation to prohibit the use of cyanide in Wisconsin mines and metallic ore processing facilities. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the State Representative and State Senator representing (County, Town, Village etc.), the DNR Secretary, the Governor and the Wisconsin (Counties, Towns) Associations. ROLL CALL ADOPTED LOST VOTE TALLY INTRODUCED BY: STATE OF WISCONSIN SS (County, Town, Village etc.) I, _________________ Clerk of (County, Town, Village etc.), Wisconsin do hereby certify that the above is a true and correct copy of the resolution passed by the (County, Town, Village etc.) Board of Supervisors on this date. Date Signature ________________________________________ Name of Clerk, (County, Town, Village etc.) Clerk ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ F A C T S H E E T O N C Y A N I D E I N W I S C O N S I N M I N I N G **Please print off, post and circulate** DANGERS OF CYANIDE IN MINING: Sodium cyanide is acutely toxic to any living thing. Incredibly small amounts of cyanide can kill fish. For example, cyanide measured at 20 to 80 parts per billion can kill rainbow and brown trout. Birds and mammals that drink water or feed on cyanide-poisoned wildlife can be killed if they are exposed to cyanide at 40 to 200 parts per million--an amount also fatally toxic to humans. Leftover cyanide at very small concentrations has harmed birds and other wildlife that drank mine pond wastewater. Cyanide is a powerful solvent that breaks down heavy metals--such as mercury, cadmium, chromium, and lead--that end up as waste products that need to be dumped. Cyanide can also break down and form complexes with other chemicals or metals and remain as toxic. Mixes of cyanide with other metals and chemicals can be just as toxic as cyanide itself, but they are not routinely monitored or carefully regulated. CYANIDE AT THE CRANDON MINE: Sodium cyanide would be used as a chemical "reagent" or solvent to dissolve out metals from the ore in the "flotation process," particularly copper, gold and silver. There are significant amounts of gold and silver at Crandon; the DNR estimates as much as 1,100,000 ounces of gold, and 63,000,000 ounces of silver. Northern Wisconsin also has several other gold and silver deposits. Rio Algom's Nicolet Minerals Company (NMC) proposes to transport up to 20 tons of cyanide per month to the Crandon mine site. Cyanide and other toxics such as sulfuric acid pose environmental risks from transportation and storage at the site and also from residuals in the waste dump and in the waste back-filled into the abandoned mine shaft. DNR consultant Andres Trevino reported that if NMC uses truckloads of cyanide at the highest estimated rate, a one-month inventory would be 18-20 tons. If the mine were to operate for 28 years, over 6,000 tons of cyanide would be required. Trevino reported that most of the residual cyanide would end up in the pyrite concentrate that is proposed to be back-filled into the mine shaft, potentially in contact with groundwater. At least some residual cyanide would end up in the waste tailings dump. Cyanide can be treated to become less toxic, but Trevino does not report that NMC is proposing any active destruction of the toxic chemical. Instead it appears that NMC simply expects any leftover cyanide to break down naturally in the waste dump pond when exposed to sunlight. But colder temperatures, such as in northern Wisconsin, can stop the breakdown of cyanide. CYANIDE DISASTERS AT MINES: Colorado. Cyanide spills from the Summitville gold mine contributed to severe environmental problems on a 17-mile stretch of the Alamosa River. It is now a federal Superfund site, with cleanup costing $170-200 million. http://www.responsiblemining.org Montana. Mines had 62 spills or leaks of cyanide in 1982-98. The Zortman-Landusky cyanide heap leach gold mine had repeated leaks and discharges, resulting in wildlife deaths and severe contamination of streams and groundwater. Nevada. The Gold Quarry mine released about 245,000 gallons of cyanide- laden waste into two local creeks. In 1989 and 1990, a series of eight cyanide leaks occurred at the McCoy/Cove gold mine, releasing almost 900 pounds of cyanide. South Dakota. In 1998, 6-7 tons of cyanide-laced tailings spilled from the Homestake Mine, killing fish in Whitewood Creek, Black Hills. Idaho. The Grouse Creek gold mine, operated by Hecla with "state-of-the-art" technology in 1993-97, now faces the possible collapse of its cyanide waste pond dam. The federal government proposes to relieve the pressure by gradually releasing the cyanide into the Salmon River. http://www.times.org/archives/2000/cyanide.htm Guyana. In 1995, over 860 million gallons of cyanide-laden tailings were released into a major river when a dam collapsed at the Omai gold mine. Australia. The Northparkes copper-gold mine in New South Wales killed 2700 birds in 1995. http://forests.org/ric/ Kyrgyzstan. A truck transporting solid cyanide to the Kumtor mine plunged off a bridge in 1998, spilling 2 tons of cyanide into local waters. Papua New Guinea. A helicopter crash in 2000 released cyanide bound for a gold mine. Romania. A huge February 2000 spill at the Aural gold mine destroyed much of the Tisza River ecosystem in Hungary and Yugoslavia; thousands of dead fish floated into the Danube. OUR WEAKENED MINING LAWS State Statute 160.19(12) says that metallic mines are exempt from the state Groundwater Protection Law. Statute 291.35 says that metallic mining waste is not subject to the state's stringent Hazardous Waste Management Law, even if it contains cyanide. Mine waste is instead regulated by DNR rules based on weaker standards for solid waste disposal. Unlike state statutes, the DNR has the power to grant variances and make changes to its own rules without legislative approval or public input. Montana voters in 1998 banned the use of cyanide in mining, halting new sulfide mine permits. An initiative may soon be on Colorado's ballot. Wisconsin is thus BEHIND these two pro-mining states in its environmental laws. The Australian state of New South Wales is considering a similar ban. A bill to ban cyanide in mining will be introduced in the next Wisconsin legislative session; contact your legislators and legislative candidates TODAY to support it! Take petitions (available on-line below) to your family, friends, and public events. Have your community group sign on to the Wisconsin Campaign to Ban Cyanide in Mining, and get your local governments to pass a resolution supporting a cyanide ban in mining. FOR MORE DOCUMENTATION Log on the Wolf Watershed Educational Project http://www.alphacdc.com/treaty/cyanide.html or contact Dave Blouin at 608-233-8455, [EMAIL PROTECTED] For national/international information log on Mineral Policy Center http://www.mineralpolicy.org Project Underground http://www.moles.org PETITION TO BAN CYANIDE IN MINING http://www.alphacdc.com/treaty/petition.html WISCONSIN CAMPAIGN TO BAN CYANIDE IN MINING (CBCM) Wolf Watershed Educational Project c/o Midwest Treaty Network 731 State Street, Madison WI 53703 USA Hotline: (800) 445-8615 Tel/./Fax: (608) 246-2256 E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web: http:.//www.treatyland.com
