Pueblo Viejo mine
| Location | |
|---|---|
| Location | Cotuí |
| Sánchez Ramírez Province | |
| Country | Dominican Republic |
| Coordinates | 18°56′23″N 70°10′31″W / 18.9396°N 70.1753°W |
| Production | |
| Products | Gold Silver |
| Owner | |
| Company | Barrick Gold Corporation Newmont Corporation |
| Website | https://puebloviejolugardevalor.com/ |
| Year of acquisition | 2009 (operated 1975-1999 by Rosario Dominicana, S. A. |
| Local impacts | |
| Pollution | Acid mine drainage, cyanide, heavy metals polluting Maguaca and Margajita rivers and Hatillo Dam |
| Displaced | 65 families; additional 400-600 families requesting relocation, but denied |
| Jobs | 2,350 employees and 2,500 contractors |
| Development | $2.6 billion in tax revenues from 2013-2020; 2% of Dominican Republic’s GDP |
Pueblo Viejo mine is an open-pit gold and silver mine in the Sánchez Ramírez Province of the Dominican Republic where mining operations started in 2012 and expect to cease in 2041. It is the largest gold mine in Latin America and 13th largest gold mine in the world. The mine is run by Pueblo Viejo Dominicana Corporation (PVDC), which is 60% owned by Barrick Gold Corporation and 40% owned by Newmont Corporation.
Pueblo Viejo employs approximately 2,350 employees and 2,500 contractors. The economic activities of the mine represent 2% of the Dominican Republic’s gross domestic product and Pueblo Viejo is the largest corporate taxpayer in the country.
The mine has generated an environmental conflict, because pollution from the tailings dam and windblown particulates have contaminated rivers and killed local livestock who ingested the toxins. Local communities say that the mine has ruined their lives and caused many health problems: skin lesions are common; children are sickened by chemical vapors; and agricultural land is no longer productive. Local people have asked to be relocated away from the mine since 2013, but neither the government nor the company have responded to their requests.
The company proposed to expand the mine in 2019, meeting with fierce resistance from communities in Yamasá who would be impacted by the expansion.