EurasiaNet.org: Georgia Opts for Gold Mining at Protected Historical Site

Georgian officials faced a tough choice between mining for gold or historical preservation and the Government is going for gold. Journalist Paul Rimple emphasized the gold mine’s contentious issue in his article published on website EurasiaNet.org on March 18.

The Georgian Ministry of Culture and Heritage Protection permitted Russian-owned mining company RMG Gold to excavate gold from Sakdrisi-Kachagiani, a nine-hectare site in southeastern Georgia that many archeologists claim contains fragments of one of the world's oldest gold mines.

The message the Culture Ministry is sending is mixed. In a March 14 statement, it called the claims about Sakdrisi's archeological value a "myth," yet it also announced intentions to invite independent international experts to monitor RMG Gold's mining at the site in case of "some scientific" discovery.

Read the full article on: www.eurasianet.org