7. Mining and communities

VOLA 7-6
Anti-MLP graffiti in Caimanes, Chile: ‘MLP – one of the most privileged copper mining companies in Chile – what safety measures have the inhabitants of Caimanes been notified of? We don’t know the likelihood of a natural disaster, living as we do in an earthquake zone, and with huge global changes taking place. We demand an early warning system that we can trust, covering the whole area. Power to the Comité de Defensa Personal!’ © Tom Gatehouse 2016
VOLA 7-5
The camp at Jáchal, Argentina: ‘Hands off Jachal’. © Tom Gatehouse 2016
VOLA 7-1
Camila Méndez. © Tom Gatehouse 2017
VOLA 7-2
Dried up river-bed in Caimanes, Chile. © Tom Gatehouse 2016

Anti-MLP graffiti in Caimanes, Chile: ‘MLP – one of the most privileged copper mining companies in Chile – what safety measures have the inhabitants of Caimanes been notified of? We don’t know the likelihood of a natural disaster, living as we do in an earthquake zone, and with huge global changes taking place. We demand an early warning system that we can trust, covering the whole area. Power to the Comité de Defensa Personal!’ © Tom Gatehouse 2016

The camp at Jáchal, Argentina: ‘Hands off Jachal’. © Tom Gatehouse 2016

Dried up river-bed in Caimanes, Chile. © Tom Gatehouse 2016

Abstract

Mining has grown exponentially in Latin America in the last three decades. Massive new mining projects have had major socioenvironmental effects, including pollution, appropriation and contamination of water supplies, division and co-optation of communities, and in some cases their forced relocation.

Communities are learning how to resist and some have successfully challenged government and company claims that large-scale mining projects can be safe, sustainable, and socially beneficial.

Index

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About the Author

Tom Gatehouse is a writer and translator who has lived in Argentina, Spain and Brazil. He holds an MPhil in Latin American Studies from the University of Cambridge.

He has written for LAB and Red Pepper and his translations have appeared in Folha de S. Paulo, Agência Pública and Tales and Trails Lisbon, a recent collection of short stories and other writings. He lives in London.

Interviewees

Camila Méndez. © Tom Gatehouse 2017

Alfredo Gallardo and Esther González, Chile. © Tom Gatehouse 2016

Carina Jofré, Argentina. © Tom Gatehouse 2016

Lucio Cuenca (OLCA): interviewed in London on 23 May 2017 by Tom Gatehouse. Transcribed by Tom Gatehouse and translated by Chris Whitehouse.

Marcelo Giraud (Asamblea Popular por el Agua): interviewed in Mendoza, Argentina, on 17 November 2016 by Tom Gatehouse. Translated by Hebe Powell.

Esther González and Alfredo Gallardo (CDPC): interviewed in Caimanes, Chile, on 24 November 2016 by Tom Gatehouse. Translated by Francis McDonagh.

Angelo Herrera (Hotel manager): interviewed in Caimanes, Chile, on 25 November 2016 by Tom Gatehouse. Translated by María Boniface and Mike Gatehouse.

Carina Jofré (CONICET San Juan): interviewed in San Juan, Argentina, on 17 November 2016 by Tom Gatehouse. Translated by Tom Gatehouse.

Camila Méndez (COSAJUCA): interviewed in London on 30 November 2017 by Tom Gatehouse. Translated by Mike Gatehouse.

Rodrigo Péret (Churches and Mining Network) and Thiago Alves da Silva (MAB): interviewed in London on 19 October 2017 by Tom Gatehouse. Translated by Tom Gatehouse.

Oscar Roca (CAEP): interviewed in Huanuni, Bolivia, on 30 November 2016 by Tom Gatehouse. Transcribed by Alan Williams and translated by Rachel Toogood.

Constanza San Juan and Stefanía Vega (CTDG): interviewed in Santiago de Chile on 26 November 2016 by Tom Gatehouse. Translated by Matty Rose.

Rogelio Ustate (Tabaco community): interviewed in Hatonuevo, La Guajira, Colombia, on 7 January 2017 by Emma Banks. Transcribed by Elizabeth Pillares and translated by James Scorer.

Lucrecia Wagner (CONICET Mendoza): interviewed in Mendoza, Argentina, on 16 November 2016 by Tom Gatehouse. Translated by Tom Gatehouse.

References

NB: All web references were checked and still available in May/June 2018 unless otherwise stated.

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Bury, J. and Bebbington, A. (2013) ‘New geographies of extractive industries in Latin America’, in A. Bebbington and J. Bury (eds), Subterranean Struggles, pp. 27–66, University of Texas Press, Austin, TX.

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