AJS is partnering with the grassroots community environmental committee in the Siria Valley to investigate contamination from a nearby mine linked to widespread skin diseases and water shortages in surrounding poor communities.

Read the October 2003 edition of Revistazo.com
Gold vs. Skin: The cry of the children of the Siria Valley
to learn more details about the situation in these communities.

a child from the community seeking treatment at the local clinic
for skin abrasions believed to be caused
by contamination from the mine

a picture of the mine´s water treatment center

"It is not just the skin that becomes infected,
but rather the whole person"

Dr. Juan Almendares

Juan Almendares is a medical doctor and professor at the National University of Honduras. He is a well-known, respected and credible environmentalist and humanitarian.

Here are some excerpts of an article Dr. Almendares wrote concerning his investigation into the health hazards caused by contamination from the Entre Mares mine in Siria Valley:

"In the past, experts have only focused on the skin diseases, without any analysis of how the environment has been altered by the mining industry. Experts in the past have not investigated the ecological and social conditions in which residents of the Siria Valley live. This raises the following questions: How can skin contamination be isolated from study of contamination from the mines? Why aren´t the skin problems of those working in the mines being addressed? Why hasn't there been a study of the scarcity and poor quality of water in the Valley?

A community member from Siria Valley said to me:

´It is not just our skin that is plagued with illness, but
the whole person. Skin not only covers the body, it
is also in direct contact with the environment, which, in our
case, is the mine. The mine is what is making us sick,
destroying nature and the life of the community.´

We need to unite science with truth, and justice with ethics. We should follow the example of Costa Rica in prohibiting the extractive mining industry from contaminating and harming the health of persons, communities and ecosystems."

the skin around a young boy´s waist shows sign of disease

a mother holds her baby close to show us the why she believe´s
the mine is contaminating her community and family

Return to home