Roșia Montană is a community of sixteen villages located in a district known as the Golden Quadrilateral, in the South Apuseni Mountains of Transylvania, Romania. The Golden Quadrilateral has a mining history spanning more than 2,000 years.

The Roșia Montană concession area encompasses parts of four of these villages. The state mining company, Minvest, conducted open-pit mining in the area until 2006, when state-funded mining operations ceased ahead of Romania’s accession to the European Union. The closure contributed to unemployment and economic decline in the local area.

Historical mining activities left an environmental legacy of abandoned waste dumps, tailings ponds and contamination affecting local streams, soils and water. Investigations undertaken in connection with the proposed Project identified metals including zinc, iron, arsenic, lead and cadmium in untreated mine discharges.

The area also contains extensive underground workings from different periods of mining activity, including ancient galleries. Historical mining, including open-pit operations during the communist period, damaged or destroyed portions of these workings.

Gabriel’s proposed development plan included measures to preserve the area’s cultural heritage and to treat water affected by historical mining activities as part of the proposed mining operation.

Key Facts of Rosia Montana Project