In August 1995, the tailings dam at the Omai Mine in Guyana failed, spilling mine tailings containing cyanide, heavy metals and other pollutants into the Essequibo River. About 23,000 people live in the region surrounding the river, and they rely on the river for drinking water, bathing and fishing. A public interest group filed a class action lawsuit against Cambior in 1997 in Québec Superior Court seeking damages on behalf of the Guyanese victims of the spill. The Omai Mine is wholly owned by Omai Gold Mines Limited (OGML). At the time of the spill, Cambior owned 65% of this company and the balance was owned by Golden Star Resources and the Government of Guyana. In 2002, Cambior acquired Golden Star’s interest in OGML, thereby obtaining a 95% ownership interest in the company. |
| Name of conflict: | Omai gold mine tailings dam, Guyana |
| Country: | Guyana |
| Accuracy of location | MEDIUM (Regional level) |
| Type of conflict. 1st level: | Mineral Ores and Building Materials Extraction |
| Type of conflict. 2nd level: | Tailings from mines |
| Specific commodities: | Gold |
| Project details | |
| Type of population | Rural |
| Affected Population: | 23000 |
| Company names or state enterprises: | Cambior from Canada Omai Gold Mines Limited (OGML) from Guyana - a consortium between a Canadian company and the government of Guyana (Guyana) Golden Star Resources from Canada |
| Intensity | LATENT (no visible organising at the moment) |
| Reaction stage | Mobilization for reparations once impacts have been felt |
| Groups mobilizing: | Farmers Indigenous groups or traditional communities Fisher people |
| Forms of mobilization: | Lawsuits, court cases, judicial activism |
| Environmental Impacts | Visible: Surface water pollution / Decreasing water (physico-chemical, biological) quality, Mine tailing spills |
| Socio-economical Impacts | Visible: Loss of livelihood |
| Project Status | In operation |
| Conflict outcome / response: | Court decision (failure for environmental justice) |
| Do you consider this an environmental justice success? Was environmental justice served?: | No |
| Briefly explain: | The Québec Superior Court dismissed the case in August 1998, on the grounds that the courts in Guyana were in a better position to hear the case. A lawsuit against Cambior was filed in Guyana, but it was dismissed by the High Court of the Supreme Court of Judicature of Guyana in 2002. A new suit was filed against Cambior in 2003 in Guyana again seeking damages for the effects of the 1995 spill. In October 2006, the High Court of the Supreme Court of Judicature of Guyana ordered the dismissal of the 2003 action and ordered the plaintiffs to pay the defendants’ legal costs. |
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| Contributor: | Irene Pietropaoli |
| Last update | 18/08/2019 |
| Conflict ID: | 837 |