THE battle between mining companies, Noranda Jamaica Bauxite Partners and New Day Aluminum (Jamaica) Limited, and nine residents on the fringe of the Cockpit Country entered the Appeal Court on Monday.

It is the latest episode in a lengthy battle involving the two companies, which are also known jointly as Discovery Bauxite, concerning their right to mine outside the fringes of the Cockpit Country in a major deal with the Government which could cost the treasury millions of US dollars if the court ruling favours the nine residents who want the mining to stop.

This follows the decision of Supreme Court judge, Justice Anne-Marie A Nembhard, who ruled in January in favour of the residents who contended, through their legal team headed by King’s Counsel Michael Hylton, that mining affects their constitutional rights, including one female’s insistence that she lost her husband due to the effects of the mining.

Despite pleas from the companies that they be allowed to continue mining until the case against them is heard in November, the court made an order in January barring both Noranda Jamaica Partners II and New Day Aluminum (Jamaica) from either commencing or continuing any mining of lands, which some residents claim were too close to the Cockpit Country area of St Ann under Special Mining Lease (SML) 173.

The demarcations had been previously altered by the Government in an effort to assure the residents that their lifestyle would not be affected, while a much larger group protested the activity.

The bauxite companies hit back that the judge’s order ignored a number of positives which had been expected from the mining agreement, including projected tax collection inclusive of bauxite production levy and royalties for the financial year 2020/23 of approximately US$35 million, and a further US$139 million projected for tax collection for the period 2023-2027, the loss of which would even more negatively affect the Jamaican economy.

This position has also been upheld, not only by the former attorney General and now Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs Marlene Malahoo Forte, but Minister of Finance and the Public Service Dr Nigel Clarke.

Dr Clarke reacted that, “Jamaica’s bauxite-alumina sector is of vital economic and developmental significance. The sector supports relatively high-paying jobs and, in the past two years, has generated between US$300 million and US$400 million in foreign exchange each year.”

In February 2022 the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) issued two environmental permits to Noranda Jamaica Bauxite partners for the mining of over 1,300 hectares of land in St Ann. NEPA confirmed that the permits were for a limited geographical area consisting of 1,333 hectares of land. The first permit allows for the mining and quarrying of bauxite, peat, sand, minerals (including aggregates), construction, and industrial material, metallic and non-metallic ores. The second allows for the clearing of six hectares or more of vegetation, excluding agricultural holdings under production.

The mining companies said that Justice Nembhard had failed to grapple with the potential blow to the economy if mining was prevented.

They said that the country’s economy would also suffer from the loss of domestically generated income, a tremendous loss of export earnings from the sector, as well as inflows from the bauxite levy of approximately US$4.9 billion for the financial year 2022/23.

However, spokesmen for the residents have insisted that the injunction granted in January had taken into consideration breaches of their fundamental rights, and not the economics of the mining agreement between the Government and the investors.

Noranda Bauxite Limited has a 49 per cent interest in the partnership and owns and operates the physical mining assets and operations. The Government of Jamaica owns the remaining 51 per cent. A concession from the Government permits Noranda Bauxite Limited to mine bauxite in Jamaica through to 2030.