A local appeals court in Central Romania has decided in favour of an environmental NGO that has been struggling to put a halt to the Rosia Montana gold project in a case focused on the “illegal” use of exploitation wells.

Gabriel Resources, the operator of the Rosia Montana Gold Corporation, has been running a campaign arguing the exploitation works would not harm the environment but rather improve the living standards in the area.

The nong-governmental organization Alburnus Maior Association argues that Gabriel and Rosia Montana Gold Corporation placed two exploitation projects, involving 59 and 192 wells respectively, in an illegal framework by claiming the works had a “low impact on the environment”.

AMA argued that serious errors occurred in evaluating the impact of the works and the type of drilling and that legal rules on establishing the environmental impact were breached.

But lawyers for the Rosia Montana Gold Corporations argued that AMA claims did not justify the court decision and showed the RMGC works did not lead to a significant environmental effects so far.