Two Canadian mining firms, one from Vancouver and the other from Toronto, have been singled out by the Dalai Lama as having plans that could irreversibly damage the ecology of the Tibetan plateau.

The companies--Continental Minerals Corporation of Vancouver and Inter-Citic of Toronto--had taken up invitations by China to prospect for gold and copper in its western region.

Dalai Lama

The report by the Environment and Development Desk of the Central Tibetan Administration said indiscriminate mining in the Tibetan plateau will also impact local and global climatic patterns.

It quotes an environment expert as saying: "In Tibet we can't do what other provinces (of China) did--first destroying the environment and then fixing it. Tibet's environment is more fragile, we have to protect it from the start because it might not recover otherwise."

The plan in the Tibetan plateau is part of China's "Go West" campaign to reduce the yawning chasm between its rich eastern coastal provinces and the western hinterlands.

To facilitate this, China is wooing foreign investment including junior mining firms and selling thousands of prospecting rights through bids, auctions and other public means.

"In recent developments related to Tibet's mineral resources, foreign-based junior mining companies, mainly from Canada and Australia, have announced their intentions and plans to explore and eventually mine gold and copper in Tibet," the report said.

"Two Canada-based companies have entered into an "option agreement", which according to our knowledge might not be recognized by the Chinese law," the report suggested.

"It nevertheless highlights the keenness on part of minor mining companies to get a foothold in China in anticipation of the opening of the China's mining industry."

Ronald Thiessen, President and CEO of the Vancouver-based Continental Minerals Corporation said on his website that the agreement for the Xietongmen Gold-Copper property has been finalized and received Canadian and Chinese regulatory approvals.

It is located 240 kilometres southwest of Lhasa in Tibet. Exploration is to begin this year.

Toronto-based Inter-Citic Minerals Inc. said on its website that it has an exclusive focus on gold exploration and development opportunities in China.

In a joint-venture with China's Qinghai Geological Survey Institute, the company has interest in the Dachang Gold mine, which is located in Chumarleb County in Yushu, Tibet.

A third company cited was Orchid Capital Limited based in Australia which is in partnership with the China Tibet Institute of Geological Survey.

The three companies have deeply concerned the Dalai Lama that increased mineral extraction activities would have large adverse social and environmental impacts on the Tibetan Plateau and further beyond into the Himalayan mountain range.

The Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of the people in Tibet, which China considers to be an integral part of its territory.

He continues to lead a life of exile in India after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959.

The Dalai Lama, a Nobel laureate is considered to be one of the world's enduring figures of struggle and compassion against oppression as he continues to seek autonomy for his homeland.