Paying The High Price Of Gold

It is no secret that open-pit gold mines wreak havoc on the environment. Less widely known is the incredible amount of power free trade agreements have granted to gold-mining corporations to cause this damage.
http://www.alterinter.org/article3716.html?lang=fr

Miner Suspends Controversial Project In Peru

The consortium will make its "best effort" to comply with "all the demands of President Ollanta Humala's administration for responsible mining," the press release said.

The government has made it clear that "water must be used for human consumption, for housing and sanitation and agricultural development ... once those specifications have been met we're prepared to allow responsible mining

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2011/11/30/miner-suspends-controversial-project-in-peru/

Ghana Gold

Galamsey also causes serious environmental problems and water pollution. Many mining operators are now focusing their efforts on the rivers themselves, using specialist imported machinery to suck up mud from the river bed. This is then treated with chemicals, including poisons such as cyanide, lead and mercury, to extract the gold before the waste is deposited back into the rivers. Aside from the dreadful consequences this has for aquatic life, the toxins are absorbed by humans because fish is a necessary food source and the rivers are often the only source of water for drinking and bathing. Dozens of people have died and hundreds more have been poisoned because of the after effects. 
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/africainvestigates/2011/11/2011113071310331931.html