An Overview of the Environmental Impact Assessment of Mining Projects in Chile

Abstract

In accordance with the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations, the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is the main management tool used to identify and prevent the impact of productive activities on the environment and human health and promote compensation measures. Metallic mining is the main productive sector in Chile. In 2021, Chile was the highest global producer of copper, the second-highest producer of molybdenum, and the third-highest producer of silver. Other types of non-metallic mining, such as siliceous aggregates, iodine, and hydrocarbons, are also notable. Mining activity requires robust and flexible environmental legislation. This paper analyzes the performance of the Chilean EIA system regarding mining projects entered into the system as Environmental Impact Declarations (EIDs) for low-incident projects and Environmental Impact Studies (EISs) for high-incident projects. The 2867 mining projects submitted to the Chilean EIA system as EIDs (91.8%) and EISs (8.2%) between 1994 and 2019 were compiled. For a proper performance evaluation, a representative sample of 68 projects (61 EID and 7 EIS) was studied through a principal coordinate analysis using eleven indicators widely used in the EIA scientific literature. The results do not show significant differences between the EID and EIS projects or remarkable differences regarding the increasing restrictions introduced by the successive regulatory periods SD30, SD95, and SD40. Based on the observed weaknesses, four opportunities for improvement are proposed focused on creating a simplified sanctioning procedure, upgrading the form of delivery of the project monitoring information, early citizen participation, and incorporating the climate change variable into the projects. This paper extends the methodology introduced in previous papers to evaluate the performance of the Chilean EIA system in mining projects, seeking also to offer a feasible methodology to other countries with a similar socio-economic context or other productive sectors potentially impacted by the degradation of land and renewable natural resources.

Socio-Environmental Risks Linked with Mine Tailings Chemical Composition: Promoting Responsible and Safe Mine Tailings Management Considering Copper and Gold Mining Experiences from Chile and Peru

“…Another important aspect has to do with the use of the land; more than a risk, this is a concrete fact, as the site where the mine tailings are deposited will not return to its initial state in terms of environmental functionality and ecosystem services [ 104 , 105 ]. Thus, the objective is to minimize the impact that land use causes on the environment by having the fewest number of sites that store mine tailings.…”

Minería y Medio Ambiente: Un Análisis de la Declaración de Impacto Ambiental en Proyectos de Explotación Minera La Damira

“…La mayoría de las actividades identificadas, potenciales generadores de impactos ambientales, se encuentran presentes en las listas de chequeo dado que se trata de prácticas convencionales u operaciones habituales, de reconocida eficacia en el desarrollo de la actividad minera (Rodríguez-Luna et al, 2022). Son catorce ( 14) las actividades consideradas más importantes para la etapa pre-operativa, seis (07) para la etapa de operación y (07) para la etapa de cierre.En la etapa de construcción el proyecto ocasionará cierto impacto negativo durante el periodo de construcción, se hace necesario el diseño e implementación de medidas para contrarrestar las acciones de mayor deterioro ambiental, es por esto que los beneficios ambientales de su ejecución resultan muy provechosos en especial por generar posibilidades de desarrollo social y económico de la localidad.…”

“…Este artículo se propone analizar de manera detallada la Declaración de Impacto Ambiental (DIA) en proyectos de explotación minera en la etapa de exploración en el Perú. La DIA, como instrumento fundamental en la evaluación de impacto ambiental, tiene el potencial de mitigar los efectos adversos de la minería en el entorno natural y las comunidades locales (Rodríguez-Luna et al, 2022).…”