PM: Canadian gold mine project set to be rejected

(AP) PM: Canadian gold mine project set to be rejected
BUCHAREST, Romania
Romania’s prime minister says a special parliamentary commission is set to reject a bill that would permit Europe’s biggest open-cast gold mine.

Canada’s Gabriel Resources has been waiting 14 years for approval for the controversial project, which would use cyanide to mine 314 tons of gold and 1,500 tons of silver in the town of Rosia Montana in northwestern Romania.

The government of Prime Minister Victor Ponta originally sent a bill to Parliament to approve the project, but changed its mind after weeks of protests over environment concerns and criticism that Romania would earn too little from the deal.

“The ruling coalition intends to reject the project,” Ponta said Monday, adding the government supports foreign investment in its natural resources. The parliamentary commission is expected to vote Monday evening.