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Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, May 29, 1998
Translated from the original Russian
Kumtor Operating Company (KOC) today reported providing medicines amounting to approximately $5,000 to the Barskoon hospital. The patients started coming to the hospitals two days after the sodium cyanide leakage incident of May 20, 1998.
In addition to medicine, 71 Barskoon people, who were referred for observation to the Kyzyl Suu Clinic, are being provided with bed linen and food from the Kumtor minesite.
On May 26, KOC president Gerhard Glattes met with the inhabitants of the Barskoon village. He said: "It is regrettable that this incident happened, but we will do our best to make your lives easier during this period. We will also ensure that reliable water supply to Barskoon village is provided." President Glattes made a commitment that KOC will repair and asphalt the by-pass road along the village. In addition, KOC will drill a water well to provide a constant water supply to the village.
Kumtor Gold Company (KGC) has stationed a headquarters in the Edelweiss camp, located near the Barskoon village on May 26. President of State Concern Kyrgyzaltyn Dastan Sarygulov, who, at the same time, is a member of Governmental Commission on the investigation of the reasons and consequences of the incident, and Kumtor employees are presently at Edelweiss to provide round-the-clock support to the people living in that area. In addition, State Concern Kyrgyzaltan has given a vehicle, UAZ-452, to the Barskoon village administration. Ex-president of KOC Len Homeniuk has arrived in the Edelweiss camp to assist in the activities in the Barskoon area.
On June 1, 1998, the chair, president and chief executive officer of the Canadian Cameco Corporation Bernard Michel will arrive in Bishkek. Upon his arrival there will be an emergency meeting of the executive committee of Kumtor Gold Company.
International experts assure there are no delayed, or cumulative or lasting ill effects from non-lethal doses of cyanide. Sodium cyanide, the product commercially utilized in gold mining, occurs naturally in most stone fruits like cherries and apples and in vegetables like radishes, cabbage and turnips. A common source of exposure to cyanide is through tobacco smoke. Within hours cyanides are removed from the body through a self-detoxification process that prevents toxin levels from building up. This is the reason why there are no medium or long-term effects from exposure to cyanides below the immediate lethal dose. Cyanides do not cause cancer and do not affect reproduction.
Humans and fish are the groups most sensitive to cyanide. For humans a fatal dose of dry sodium cyanide is estimated to be between one and three mg per kg body weight. Fish are about one thousand times more sensitive than humans. They begin to die at water concentrations of around 0.05 to 0.4 milligrams per litre. Fish are a biological marker for the presence of cyanide in water. If fish are living, then no other form of life will be harmed. Ecological experts, taking water samples, have observed healthy fish in the Barskoon bay of Lake Issyk-Kul.
Plants and vegetables are not affected by cyanide and do not absorb sufficient quantities to have any effect if consumed by humans or animals. During 1994 the EPA (US Environmental Protection Agency) stopped testing of plants, because results obtained up to that time indicated that no meaningful and measurable uptake of cyanide takes place.
The water quality is still being monitored, although analyses of water samples on May 25 confirmed that there is no cyanide in the waters of the Barskoon River and the bay of Lake Issy-Kul. The Chui independent ecological laboratory carried out tests of water, soil and air. Soil sampling is taking place according to the program worked out by the Ministry of Environmental Protection. Duplicate samples are being taken by KOC. However, the soil samples taken by the Issy-Kul and Naryn Territorial Committee on Environment Protection showed that cyanide content is within the natural background of cyanide in the area.
The Kumtor gold project is a joint venture owned two-thirds by the government of Kyrgyzstan and one-third owned by the Canadian Cameco Corporation. Kumtor Operating Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cameco, is the project operator.
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For further information, please contact:
Tinara Shaildaeva
Assistant Manager, Corporate Relations, KOC
(3312) 42-83-05, 42-22-82, 22-63-49