"Personally, I hate to see companies, Chinese or foreign, to do mining in China's scenery areas in the Western/Southwestern China. They destroy excellent scenery and heavily pollute the environment."
You have touched a nerve, pardner!
Nobody likes to see scenery destroyed or the environment polluted. However the radical enviro movement in Canada and the US, in the mistaken belief that they will improve the world's environment have used every means possible to shut down (yes shut down, not improve mining practice) the most efficient and environmentally friendly mining industry in the world and forced it overseas. You are right. China and eastern Europe and Africa do not have (or do not enforce) the environmental and safety regs. The net effect is a degradation of the world's environment. However, China and the rest of the world want the same standard of living that Canadians and Americans enjoy. Demand will ensure that the minerals will be mined, the oil will be pumped, the gas will flow. If we are lucky, we will smarten up and use the level of technology that is capable of putting a man on the moon to mine in environmentally sound ways. If we continue to let the lawyers, funded by contributions from the enviro movement, try to shut down mining, the industry will continue to expand in areas where there are no regs or enforcement.
I note however, that there are efforts from the industry itself to self regulate. e.g. the 3E program (excellence in exploration) sponsored by the PDAC (Prospectors and Developers assoc. of Canada). I also note that senior mining companies e.g. Barrick and the former Placer Dome conduct themselves with the same concern for the environment in Africa and Oceania as they do in Canada and the US.
Check out the documentary "Mine your own Business" a film by Phelim Mcaleer and Ann McElhinny, to see the dark side of the billion dollar environmental business. |
