SANTIAGO: Chilean President-elect Gabriel Boric said on Sunday he will oppose mining initiatives that “destroy” the natural environment, including the controversial $2.5 billion Dominga iron, copper and gold mining project.
During a speech after his electoral victory, he said his government will also expand social rights but will do so with fiscal responsibility and taking care of the economy in the world’s top copper producing nation.
“Destroying the world is destroying ourselves. We do not want more ‘sacrifice zones‘, we do not want projects that destroy our country, that destroy communities and we exemplify this in a case that has been symbolic: No to Dominga,” he said.
A regional Chilean environmental commission in August had approved Andes Iron’s Dominga project after years of wrangling in the country’s courts and after the body had previously rejected the proposal.
The mining project would be located about 500 km (310 miles) north of the capital Santiago, and near ecological reserves.
Critics say its proximity to environmentally sensitive areas would cause undue damage. Andes Iron, a privately held Chilean company, has long rejected that assertion.
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The result was a blow to the four-month old administration of leftist President Pedro Castillo, whose flagship plan is to hike taxes on mining companies in order to fund higher social spending. Peru is the world’s No. 2 copper producer.
“During April to October that is seven months of 2021-2022, iron ore production of 143 million tonnes is not only 50 per cent jump from the production of 95.5 million tonnes in the corresponding year, it is also well on its way to surpass the record production of 246 MT achieved in 2019-20,” he said.