Cerro Blanco Gold Project in Guatemala Faces Overwhelming Objection

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The inhabitants of the Municipality of Asuncion Mita, Guatemala have rejected the development of the Cerro Blanco Gold Project by Canadian miner Bluestone Resources Inc. in a recently held mining referendum. The inhabitants had alleged that the mining operations would cause pollution in the region.

The referendum demonstrated strong opposition against the project, with 87.98% of the 8,503 people who went to the polls voting against the open pit mine. A total of 7,481 voted no to the mine, while only 904 voted in favour of the operations. Also, there were 13 blank and 105 null votes. It must be noted that the electoral roll had a total of 30,465 eligible voters.

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The referendum was convened by local government authorities under the supervision of a dozen organizations that acted as observers.

Commenting on the outcome of the referendum, Mayor Rene Antonio Guardado asked the company to respect the result. He also thanked communities for their democratic participation in the poll process.

Meantime, Bluestone Resources alleged that the referendum was organized by anti-mining advocates and that these anti-mining groups had formed a biased commission to organize it. The vote is fully comprised of individuals with an anti-mining agenda, it noted. The company has been advised that the referendum will not be legally-binding.