Illegal gold mining next to Highway 48

(Baonghean.vn) - With rudimentary tools, a group of people illegally mined gold right next to National Highway 48C, at km 46 in Khiet village, Nam Son commune, Quy Hop district (Nghe An).

A group of people digging for gold right next to Highway 48C. Photo by Ho Phuong

For the past 2 days, on National Highway 48C, passing through Khiet village, Nam Son commune, Quy Hop district, some local people have been illegally mining gold. The tools they used to mine gold include: crowbars, buckets, rakes, troughs, etc. According to these people, this is forest land that the state has allowed them to protect and nurture according to Decree 163 of the Government (land 163).

Discovering that there was gold in this area, the group hired an excavator to remove the topsoil and transport it elsewhere to dump it, then dug deep into the ground to search for gold. “This is the second day we have been working on gold here. On the first day, after deducting expenses, each person earned nearly 1 million VND,” a man digging for gold shared.

According to the reporter's observation, the location where the group of people mined gold was a steep terrain only about 4m from Highway 48C. The place where these people mined gold was a soft layer of soil, the terrain was vertical and could collapse at any time. In particular, mining near the Highway not only created bad consequences but also affected traffic on this route during the rainy and stormy season.

Speaking to reporters, Mr. Le Sy Hao, Head of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Quy Hop district, affirmed that there is currently no area in Nam Son commune that is allowed to be exploited. We will strictly handle the case of people arbitrarily mining for gold.

The gold mining site located next to Highway 48C causes significant consequences for those who pass through this route. Photo by Ho Phuong

Mr. Luong Van Thanh, Chairman of Nam Son Commune People's Committee, Quy Hop District, said: After receiving the information, the commune sent officials to conduct inspection and handling. Through inspection, it was determined that two individuals, Mac Van Long, Khiet village and Mac Van Ke, Cha Hang village, Nam Son commune, had used excavators to mine and transport soil home to pan for gold, and the commune came to remind them.

Ho Phuong