An ecological and physicochemical assessment of the damaged Konawaruk River is to commence early next month with similar studies expected to be done on the Cuyuni and Mazaruni rivers which have suffered from the impacts of mining activities.
A year ago, in September 2013, Stabroek News had reported that the Konawaruk River in Region Eight is still heavily silted more than a decade after attention was first drawn to the degraded state of the waterway as a result of mining. It had previously been branded a “dead” river – incapable of supporting aquatic life but this has drawn varying views. Following the Stabroek News report, the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment said that a detailed biological assessment of the Konawaruk River would be done.
With funding as well as expertise from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will
