The figure is only a small part of what is expected to be discovered, since there are 400 more exploitations pending examination
He Iberian Mining Observatory has documented the existence of more than one hundred mines in Spain that violate social and/or environmental rightsa figure that, according to the organization, represents only the tip of the iceberg, since they have 400 farms pending to be examined.
The Iberian Mining Observatory was created a year ago to document possible violations of social and environmental rights caused by the extractive industry in Spain and Portugal and make public the existing evidence on each case.
As a result of the collaborative research work of dozens of groups, they have already documented more than 100 georeferenced cases that reveal the magnitude of the problem, Ecologistas en Acción, a collaborator in the initiative, reported in a statement.
Mercedes Mine, in Valencia
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The observatory exposes all types of situations, such as attacks, threats or intimidating lawsuits against activists; clandestine exploitations that operate without permits or without having undergone an environmental impact assessment; or mines that infringe labor rights.
Andalusia and Galicia, at the head
“Many of these mines are located in protected areas or in the vicinity of towns, where they cause health problems and environmental impacts due to dust emissions or water pollution,” according to the same source.
So far, they have documented more than 400 environmental violations, such as spills, dust contamination or damage to cultural property; and almost 300 infractions related to lack of authorizations or illegal permits, lack of restoration or financial guarantees and administrative corruption.
Andalusia, with 24 exploitations, and Galicia, with 21, are the communities with the most cases of “illegal” mining exploitations documented by the Observatory, which considers that Behind these bad practices “is the lack of control by the administrations that generates an environment of generalized impunity”.
Sallent Mines, in Barcelona
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“This is just the tip of the iceberg”, There are still 400 cases pending documentation, according to the Observatory coordinator, Joám Evans, who highlighted that, in addition, in recent months entities from territories in which they were not investigating until now have joined forces.
“It is surprising to find so many illegal exploitations, when Both the sector and the administrations insist so much on the myth of responsible and sustainable mining.“Evans lamented.
The Iberian Mining Observatory is an environmental citizenship initiative in which around thirty groups participate with the support of the Ministry of Social Rights and Agenda 2030.
The portal has a monitoring and early warning system to detect, map and report violations and bad practices, thus facilitating the exercise and defense of environmental rights and helping to mitigate the existing asymmetries between affected communities and the extractive sector.
With these mechanisms, the project aims to contribute to the inspection and control functions of public administrations, as well as to better knowledge about the impacts caused by mining.
The details of the report will be presented during the I Iberian Meeting on social and environmental impacts of mining that will be held from October 12 to 15 in Extremadura, in whose territory an “avalanche” of new mining projects is taking place, such as the mines of lithium in Cáceres and Cañaveral, the Aguablanca nickel mine or the Alconchel copper and gold mine.
Map and file of each of the mines: https://minob.org/espanol/
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Contact of the Environment section: [email protected]