The International Cyanide Management Institute (ICMI) announced today that Gold Fields Limited’s Driefontein Gold Mine in the North West Province of South Africa has been certified in full compliance with the International Cyanide Management Code (Code).
The Driefontein Gold Mine was found in substantial compliance with the Code and was conditionally certified in April 2009, and its Corrective Action Plan was posted on the ICMI web site. Subsequently, ICMI received and accepted a report from an independent professional third-party auditor verifying that the Corrective Action Plan has been implemented and the operation is now in full compliance with the Code. The auditor’s report is available on the web site at www.cyanidecode.org/signatory_goldsfield.php and the Corrective Action Plan has been removed. The Driefontein Gold Mine must be re-audited every three years to evaluate its continuing compliance with the Code.
The Code is a voluntary industry program for companies involved in the production of gold using cyanide and companies producing and transporting this cyanide. It was developed under the aegis of the United Nations Environment Programme by a multi-stakeholder Steering Committee. The Code is intended to complement an operation’s existing obligation to comply with the applicable laws and regulations of the political jurisdictions in which the operation is located.
ICMI has been established to administer the Code, promote its adoption, evaluate its implementation, and manage the certification process. A detailed list of the operations covered by signatory companies’ applications, along with the full text of the Code and its implementing and administrative documents, are available at www.cyanidecode.org.
Date:
Thursday, September 3, 2009