Operations are set to resume at the Mawchi tin and tungsten mines in Kayah State, Myanmar, following a halt caused by a nearby landslide on October 13th that resulted in 28 deaths and the displacement of more than 500 others.
The landslides and deaths occurred in a nearby residential area as a result of bad weather during Myanmar’s rainy season. The temporary closure of the Mawchi mines began on October the 16th in order to search for dead and as a precautionary measure so that the Ministry of Mines could carry out safety inspection to avoid new accidents.
Over 50 houses were destroyed in the landslide and over 500 people, many of whom work in the mines, have been forced to stay in temporary camps for safety, whilst migrant workers have been told to return home. The local residents claim that landslides in the residential area were a direct result of mining activity, which has increasingly utilised heavy machinery in recent years. They claim ground stability has been affected by infiltration of water into the ground through cracks created by mining activity.
A 2012 document by local civil society group has previously warned of landslides in the area. “Because of the mining there are landslides in the rainy season… houses in the village shake when dynamite is detonated underground in the mines.”
ITRI View: Mawchi has been mined since its discovery by the British in 1830 with annual production peaking in 1939 with 2,500 tin produced. At the end of 2014 the area had 18 major mines, 71 small mines and 353 exploration sites.
