For Immediate Release
‘Water is More Precious than Gold’ speaking tour to challenge US/Canada’s international mining practices
WHAT: Salvadoran activists will travel to Canada and the US to garner support for their campaign to make El Salvador the first country to ban metal mining. The "Water Is More Precious than Gold" tour is part of a continent-wide public education campaign that is raising awareness about the negative impact of US/Canadian mining operations on El Salvador.
WHO: The tour will feature Vidalina Morales and Sandra Carolina Ascencio, representatives from the El Salvadoran National Roundtable against Metallic Mining (the Mesa). Since 2006, the Mesa has brought together hundreds of communities and thousands of people from across El Salvador, including environmental, community-based, research, legal and religious organizations, to successfully halt mining operations in the country and to call for a ban on metal mining.
WHEN & WHERE: The Water Is More Precious than Gold tour will start March 9, 2013 in Vancouver, Canada and will hold events in 20 Cities across Canada and the US(click here for a full list of cities and dates). Following the events in Canada, the speaking tour will head south to the US, with talks in Bangor, Portland, New York, Boston, New Jersey, and will on April 11, in Washington DC.
WHY: The speaking tour aims to build greater awareness about the issues facing El Salvador and other Latin American countries, challenge the unjust practices of US and Canadian mining companies, including Pacific Rim and Goldcorp, and build relationships with groups in North America, including those confronting their own local mining issues. The speaking tour will be followed by an international Fact-Finding Mission to El Salvador on May 9-13, aiming to build awareness around the dangers of mining in El Salvador.
The Mesa is also worried about possible contamination from upstream mining projects just over the border in Guatemala and Honduras. Goldcorp’s Cerro Blanco mine, for example, is located only 18 km from El Salvador in the headwaters of the Lempa River, the main source of water for over 60% of the population of El Salvador.
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For more information, please contact:
For events in Canada: René Guerra, 613-233.6215, director@salvaide.ca - Jen Moore, 613-569-3439, jen@miningwatch.ca - Dylan Penner, 613-795-8685, dpenner@canadians.org
For events in the US: Jan Morrill, 207-8254797, morrillj@gmail.com - Sofia Vergara, 617-849-2916 svergara@oxfamamerica.org
Or visit our website: http://www.stopesmining.org/j25/index.php/2013-tour