(Bloomberg) — A landslide at a gold mine in eastern Turkey has left nine workers unaccounted for and triggered concerns of cyanide contamination in western Asia’s longest river.
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The incident at the Copler mine dislodged 10 million cubic meters of earth across a 200-meter slope, with the missing workers still trapped under the soil, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya told reporters.
The company, which has suspended operations indefinitely, said on Wednesday that over 400 personnel from the Türkiye national disaster relief agency are on scene to assist in the rescue efforts.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s office dismissed fears that cyanide-contaminated earth has polluted the Euphrates, the 2,800-kilometer river that flows through Turkey, Syria and Iraq.
“No contamination has been detected for now,” the Environment Ministry said Wednesday in a statement.
The Energy & Natural Resources Ministry didn’t respond to a question from Bloomberg on whether Copler’s operations permit would be revoked.
The mine, located about 500 km east of the capital Ankara, is operated by Anagold Madencilik, which is 80% owned by SSR Mining Inc. Shares of the Denver-based metals producer extended declines Wednesday, falling as much as 5.6% in New York to add to Tuesday’s 54% drop. The stock is trading at its lowest price since January 2016.
Opposition Criticism
Opposition parties and industry associations accuse the government of turning a blind eye to Copler’s operations even after a cyanide waste spill at the same site in 2022. Authorities levied a fine of less than $1 million on Anagold over that incident.
“The government has preferred to side with mine owners, not with citizens,” Meral Aksener, leader of the opposition IYI Party, said in Ankara on Wednesday. “I specifically warned them in 2022 about the danger this mine poses, but they chose to turn a deaf ear.”
Gamze Tascier, deputy leader of the Republican People’s Party who went to the area as part of an opposition delegation, cited “a lack of supervision and control.” Analysis on whether cyanide has polluted underground water resources continues, she told Bloomberg by phone.
The Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects said the mine should be shut down permanently. “We are facing a possible environmental disaster,” secretary-general Dersim Gul said by phone.
“This kind of mining at the Euphrates Basin should never have been allowed,” said Deniz Atac, chairwoman of the conservation foundation TEMA. “Everyone out there is breathing cyanide as I speak.”
SSR had expected to produce as much as 220,000 ounces of gold at Copler this year, about half its anticipated global output.
“Our efforts right now continue to focus on locating our colleagues who are missing and ensuring that all our people are accounted for and safe,” SSR said in a Wednesday statement. “All operations at the mine remain suspended.”
The company said its emergency response protocol has been focused on containment and environmental sampling with the support of outside experts. Preliminary surface water sampling has been done and so far all samples are within normal values.
–With assistance from Jacob Lorinc.
(Updates shares and adds company comment from seventh paragraph.)
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David Turner is a globe-trotting journalist who brings a global perspective to our readers. With a commitment to shedding light on international events, he explores complex geopolitical issues, offering a nuanced view of the world’s most pressing challenges.
