Romanian urge lawmakers to block proposed gold mine that would use cyanide

BUCHAREST, Romania – About 2,500 people demonstrated in Romania's capital on Sunday against a planned Canadian gold mine that would use cyanide in the extraction process. The project would create the biggest gold mine in Europe, razing four mountains to make way for an open pit mine.

"Save Rosia Montana," the protesters shouted, referring to the town in northwest Romania where the mine would be.

The protesters in Bucharest's University Square joined environmentalists and historians in urging lawmakers not to pass legislation that would approve the mine as a "special national interest" creating foreign investment and jobs in a deprived area.

They later blocked a main road in the city.

For the past week, there have been protests in Bucharest and other Romanian cities against the draft bill the government has put forward that would allow Canadian company Gabriel Resources to mine gold and silver there.