“Being a miner means a lot to me because my children’s health, education and family depend on it”, says Nery Marquez, a miner at the Honduran Minas y Cuevas mining organization.

This mining organization is part of the “Honduras: Land of Shining Gold” project developed by the Alliance for Responsible Mining with the financial support of EPRM and Samlerhuset Group and the joint work of the German-Honduran Business Center, Heimerle + Meule and the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).

The path towards responsible mining

Minas y Cuevas is an organization pioneering mining formalization in Honduras. Thanks to this project and supporting allies, Minas y Cuevas strives to improve its mining practices to become an example of well-done mining that respects people and protects the environment to source fairmined gold to international markets.

By improving progressively, Minas y Cuevas provides livelihoods for more than 300 families depending on mining activities.

“We are committed to the environment.”

As part of its commitment to the environment, Minas y Cuevas has taken up the monitoring and control of sedimentation piles to manage all environmental liabilities left by Geomaque, a large-scale mining company, after its mining operations at this site. These piles are intended to treat and recover wastewater from mining sites.

The organization is also committed to reforesting and recovering previously mined areas to minimize environmental impacts by means of its current operation.

By joining forces from men and women miners, governments, and the gold industry, artisanal and small-scale mining is proven to be an activity that contributes to the well-being of the community.

Learn more about the project Honduras, land of shining gold here.

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