GILGIT, Gilgit-Baltistan: Regulators fined a Hunza company PKR 1 million and suspended its operations as scrutiny of Gilgit-Baltistan gold mining intensified.
The Gilgit-Baltistan Environmental Protection Agency (GBEPA) ordered the unnamed company to stop work immediately in Nasirabad, Hunza. Authorities also sealed the project site.
GBEPA said the company had breached conditions attached to its environmental approval. The agency ordered it to comply with regional environmental laws before resuming any activity.
Agency inspections found mining companies using heavy machinery in rivers and streams near roads, bridges, farms and settlements. GBEPA said some operators released untreated wastewater and debris directly into waterways.
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The agency also found oil and other material leaking from generators and mining equipment. Residents use water from some affected rivers for drinking and daily needs, GBEPA said.
Officials warned that mining walls and excavated material could change natural river flows. The diverted water could increase erosion around roads, settlements and agricultural land during high discharge.
The Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) sought controls on sediment erosion in the Diamer-Bhasha Dam reservoir area. It cited extraction along the Indus River between Basri and Raikot near Chilas, Diamer.
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GBEPA Director Khadim Hussain said his agency and the minerals department lacked enough staff to monitor mining sites across the region.
