Peru
has been in the headlines of major world newspapers this week, with the
recent demonstrations by miners in Madre de Dios, an important
gold-mining region in Peru's eastern Amazon. The high price of gold
over the last few years has sparked a gold rush in southeastern Peru
that has drawn thousands of miners to the region and caused fears of ecological disaster.
The government recently toughened sanctions that would punish illegal
gold miners and environmental lawbreakers with 10 years in prison, and
the miners have taken to the streets in protest. Since government-miner
negotiations broke down on March 6th, more than 5,000 people have taken
part in the protests, which ended yesterday after 3 people died and
more than 30 were injured. I have only begun to read about the issues
at play, but I'm getting the sense that the situation is enormously
complex. To try and make sense of it all, let's look at some of the
different perspectives represented in the recent BBC article:
The Protesters
- The miners say the law will put thousands out of work. An estimated 50,000 miners do not have a license to operate.
- They want the government to overturn the tough sanctions
- They argue that the government is clamping down on wildcat miners instead of helping them to obtain authorisation. "Illegal miners have been trying to get the right permits," said spokesman Jose Carlos Bustamante, "but (we) couldn't because of bureaucratic hurdles for the past three years."
- The miners accuse the government of wanting to hand over mining concessions only to large multinational companies.
- "Like it or not the economy of our region is based on mining," says
the mayor, Pedro Donayre, a former miner, who no longer wants his town
to be on the margins of the law. "I'm in favour of mining but it
does need to be legitimised. The state needs to come here and educate
the miners how to extract the gold safely without polluting and help us
change rather than demonising what we do."
The Government
- The sanctions will encourage miners to get permits and stop polluting the environment
- The government says large areas of jungle (close to 200 sq kms) have been destroyed by illegal mining and large portions of the area's waterways show high levels of mercury, used in the mining operations. "The western Amazon is the world's enclave of biological diversity," says biologist Ernesto Raez, who heads the Environmental Sustainability Centre in Lima's Cayetano Heredia University.
- The informal sector has grown out of control, and now almost a
quarter of the gold produced in the world's sixth largest producer is
illegal. The vast majority of it comes from Madre de Dios.
As
Regional President Luis Aguirre has said, the situation seems to be
"untenable". Negotiations are scheduled to resume on Monday, but both groups' positions seem to be as entrenched as ever. How can the government work together with miners to
prevent ecological destruction, and assure that they still have a
source of income? Do you think that the government is actually
interested in this, or is the government just using the environment as
an excuse to exclude the people of Madre de Dios from the mining
industry?
Indeed,a complicated situation. From what I've read, these mining projects result in incredible amounts of environmental destruction. It seems unlikely to me that the people of Peru really stand to gain from this sort of activity in the long-term. Unfortunately, miners with families to feed can't necessarily wait long-term. And legitimizing more mining projects would mean more tax revenue for the Peruvian government, which could in turn mean more and better social programs for Peruvians. I also wonder, given the scale of protests against mining operations in recent years, if indigenous groups are affected by these operations and what their position is?
ReplyDeleteHey Dan,you're right about the catch-22 for poor families in Peru. I found this great video from PBS on the issue, and it says just that: "We say, 'Bread for today and hunger tomorrow.' That is how we describe what will happen in La Pampa if they don't stop this" (6:37). While the poor may be the ones directly causing the environmental destruction, they can't be blamed for the economic conditions that may have forced them to take part in mining activities.
DeleteAt 7:06, the video also discusses how the miners are beginning to infringe on indigenous land. It seems like the indigenous people have mixed views on the mining--some participate and see it as an economic opportunity, and others view it as an encroachment on their traditional lifestyles.
Lots of room for discussion on this complex topic!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9rFipbqgJ8
I'm very cautious about distinctions between what is legal and not. In many countries, for example, "illegal" mining is far less harmful and destructive (both socially and environmentally) than "legal" mining, often carried out by huge Canadian mining companies (over 60% of mines worldwide are exploited by Canadian companies). And mulitnational mining companies (but again, especially Canadian ones) have an especially poor track record when it comes to gold mining. If you want more info on this, I'm more than happy to send you some resources or chat (I've spent the past few years focusing on Canadian mining in Guatemala and have just come back from there..)
ReplyDeleteOn a separate note, I am also very cautious in trying to understand these sorts of legal actions, because often they serve as backhand way of criminalizing the poor. And one of the first things I try to do in understanding such situations is to look at who stands to gain from what's being proposed, and how much power they have. In this case, is the governmental action really being motivated by environmental protection, or is there a (or several) powerful lobby group(s) behind it?
Those are great questions! In this situation, it seems like MNCs definitely stand to gain a lot from laws that criminalize illegal, small-scale mining, and the government doesn't really seem to be concerned about the environment when it comes to large-scale projects. A Reuters article about the protests stated that, "Even as it opposes wildcat mining, Humala, a former leftist who has governed from the center since taking office, has encouraged the construction of big, modern mines - like U.S.-based Newmont Mining's $4.8 billion Conga gold project. That project has been delayed by local community opposition over concerns it would replace a series of alpine lakes in the northern region of Cajamarca with artificial reservoirs."
DeleteIn addition, it seems like there are definite possibilities for "greening" small-scale mining if the government decided to help illegal miners formalize their operations and educate them about environmental practices. This PBS video talks about a small-scale mining cooperative, called Aurelsa, that is adopting Fair Trade and Fair Mine practices, such as cyanide leeching (5:35): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3d30l2biVo&feature=relmfu. If the government was serious about environmental protection, it could do more to support miners AND the environment!
Thanks for your insights, Rachel! I'd love to hear more about the work you've been involved in in Guate.
I think Rachel brought up some important questions when discussing legality. Questions of who benefits and who has power are important when laws tend to reflect the interests of those who make them. While I feel ill equipped to address how Peruvians and their government should work together to create sustainable lifestyles in their places of life, I have in the past been beset with heart ache due to stories I have heard of the role mining corporations play in destroying people’s lives and our earth.
DeleteIt is interesting to observe the comment of the mayor Pedro Donayre as it indicates that there are groups of ‘illegal miners’ who would be willing to change their ‘poor’ environmental practices if they could maintain a source of income. I wonder what would happen if the Peruvian government tried to kick out foreign gold mining companies and created mining co-ops owned by local miners to fill the demand for gold? Would miners and prospectors who have grown up in Peru pay more attention to the harm mining does on the local environment? I wonder what type of power (or lack of power) the Peruvian government has with large mining companies like Barak Gold (http://www.barrick.com/GlobalOperations/SouthAmerica/Pierina/default.aspx)?
Kicking out the foreign gold mining companies might not be such a bad idea. I have to wonder why they don't when I read things like this:
Delete"An unmatched source of revenue, the mining sector is held in great esteem by the region’s governments, which view it is an economic windfall. Many experts, however, say that mines like La Alumbrera are only modestly beneficial for their host countries. The lion’s share of the wealth, they say, goes into the pockets of multinationals. Such projects do create employment opportunities, but mostly during their initial construction phase. Once the mines are up and running, the number of jobs they provide is relatively small" (Le Monde: http://www.worldcrunch.com/water-or-gold-locals-across-south-america-protest-multinational-mining-projects/4823).
It sounds like Peru is definitely getting the short end of the stick. And as for exploitative "foreign" mining companies, Barrick is actually based out of Toronto. Our hands are definitely not clean...