MEXICO D.F., Dec. 10, 2012, 2012 (Menafn – Canada NewsWire via COMTEX) –The Durango State Delegation of the Mexican Prosecutors’ Office of the Federal Department of Environmental Protection (PROFEPA for its initials in Spanish) sent a notification to the Ejido La Sierrita that its inspection of the La Platosa mine on November 27 uncovered “environmental irregularities” and that it would be opening administrative proceedings to determine sanctions for Excellon de Mexico, S.A. de C.V., the Mexican subsidiary of Excellon Resources, Inc. (File PFPA/16.7.453/2012)

The inspection arose from a complaint brought by the Ejido La Sierrita against the Canadian mining company on October 8 for environmental damages caused by the mining operations at La Platosa. Under the Ecological Equilibrium and Environmental Protection Law, Excellon has an obligation to implement preventative measures to mitigate the environmental impact outlined in the company’s Environmental Impact Statement presented to the Federal Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT for its initials in Spanish) on March 11, 2004. To date, the Company has not enacted these measures, including the development of a program for the treatment of solids, liquids, domestic materials, and other dangerous materials. The Ejido also stated in its complaint that the company violated Article 88Bis of the National Water Law that obliges companies to treat residual water.

The president of the Ejido La Sierrita Board of Directors, David Espinoza, viewed PROFEPA’s response positively. “We are now requesting that the authorities utilize these proceedings to order Excellon to definitively suspend operations at the La Platosa mine as a result of these findings. Excellon has refused to construct a water treatment plant to avoid environmental damage even though this is also required under the land contract that it signed with the Ejido in 2008. The company’s violation of various clauses of this contract is also the fundamental issue in the Ejido’s lawsuit demanding rescission which is currently pending in the Agrarian Tribunal.”

Alejandra Ancheita, director of the Proyecto de Derechos Econmicos, Sociales y Culturales (ProDESC), commented that PROFEPA’s determination is a great achievement for the communal landowners as they continue to defend their human rights. “The acts and omissions of the company violates many international treaties that recognize the sovereign rights of communal landowners to make decisions regarding their natural resources. This right is enshrined in Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Resolution 1803 (XVII) of the United Nations General Assembly ‘Permanent sovereignty over natural resources’ Articles 1, 11, and 12 of the International Convention on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights; and Article 11 of the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man.”