Mining companies, indigenous communities, and the state: the political ecology of lithium in Chile (Salar de Atacama) and Argentina (Salar de Olaroz-Cauchari)
Abstract:Based on intensive and long-term field research and document reviews, this article compares the historic evolution of lithium mining in Chile and Argentina. We highlight national development discourses and government regulatory frameworks in both countries. We illustrate and assess the diverse perceptions and strategies of local actors. Finally, we discuss the socio-spatial materialization of lithium mining in terms of power relations, ecology, and economy. Using perspectives from political ecology brings to l… Show more
“…This reconfiguration is tied in with the material demands of the green transition. This is most evident in demands for lithium, a mineral whose mining has led to increased conflict between indigenous groups and mining companies and governments in Argentina and Chile (Dorn & Gundermann, 2022). McNelly (2023, p. 83) is clear what the result of the first pink tide commodity boom was:Swathes of territory were slated as sacrifice zones and destroyed in the name of national development, sparking socio‐territorial conflicts with the mainly Indigenous communities who live there.…”
Section: The Continued Relevance Of Growth‐though Extractivismmentioning
The 21st century in Latin America began with a widespread shift to the left politically, a phenomenon called the ‘pink tide’. Following a period of right‐wing re‐ascendancy, left wing governments are again gaining traction across the continent. This article analyses the end of the last pink tide via a dialogue between the post‐extractivism and degrowth literature by examining Bolivia, Ecuador, and Brazil. This is done through a look at the impacts of both economic growth as a normative policy aim and extractivism as the engine to produce this growth on political developments in these countries. In the tradition of Gramsci this is interpreted as a hegemonic force, recast here as growth‐through‐extraction, that serves to perpetuate the interests of wealthy classes despite political changes. This article concludes with a brief analysis of how academic debates and political processes have moved on since Escobar 2015 and what this might mean for the new left‐wing governments of Latin America.
“…This reconfiguration is tied in with the material demands of the green transition. This is most evident in demands for lithium, a mineral whose mining has led to increased conflict between indigenous groups and mining companies and governments in Argentina and Chile (Dorn & Gundermann, 2022). McNelly (2023, p. 83) is clear what the result of the first pink tide commodity boom was:Swathes of territory were slated as sacrifice zones and destroyed in the name of national development, sparking socio‐territorial conflicts with the mainly Indigenous communities who live there.…”
Section: The Continued Relevance Of Growth‐though Extractivismmentioning
The 21st century in Latin America began with a widespread shift to the left politically, a phenomenon called the ‘pink tide’. Following a period of right‐wing re‐ascendancy, left wing governments are again gaining traction across the continent. This article analyses the end of the last pink tide via a dialogue between the post‐extractivism and degrowth literature by examining Bolivia, Ecuador, and Brazil. This is done through a look at the impacts of both economic growth as a normative policy aim and extractivism as the engine to produce this growth on political developments in these countries. In the tradition of Gramsci this is interpreted as a hegemonic force, recast here as growth‐through‐extraction, that serves to perpetuate the interests of wealthy classes despite political changes. This article concludes with a brief analysis of how academic debates and political processes have moved on since Escobar 2015 and what this might mean for the new left‐wing governments of Latin America.
“…Chile, al tener más experiencia, ha ido adaptando su enfoque con el tiempo. Al principio, las empresas gestionaban las relaciones con las comunidades mediante transferencias financieras directas a grupos seleccionados (Dorn & Gundermann, 2022). Sin embargo, en los últimos años, las comunidades han evolucionado incorporando aspectos legales a sus interacciones con las empresas.…”
Section: Comunidades Y Gobernanzaunclassified
“…Las empresas en Argentina se centran ahora en crear infraestructuras para la comunidad y establecer conexiones laborales. Incluso contratan a miembros de la comunidad local para prestar servicios (Dorn & Gundermann, 2022).…”
El litio desempeña un papel cada vez más vital en nuestra transición hacia las fuentes de energía renovables y la producción de baterías para vehículos eléctricos. El objetivo principal de este artículo es analizar los diversos regímenes de gobernanza de Argentina, Chile y Bolivia dentro del Triángulo del Litio. Asimismo, pretende examinar los retos a los que se enfrentan estas naciones para alcanzar sus objetivos políticos. De ese modo, se podrá extraer lecciones valiosas de estas experiencias que puedan aplicarse al desarrollo de la región de Puno. Para tal fin, se ha llevado a cabo una exhaustiva revisión bibliográfica sobre la producción de litio, su cadena de valor y las partes implicadas. Los resultados indican que cada país del Triángulo del Litio ha seguido estrategias únicas basadas en estructuras de gobernanza y entornos normativos diferentes. Sus políticas se centran en aumentar la eficiencia y rentabilidad de la producción de litio, garantizando al mismo tiempo el control estatal de los beneficios asociados. Se concluye que es importante reconocer tanto las ventajas como las desventajas que plantea la extracción de litio a efectos del desarrollo sostenible. Involucrar a las partes interesadas de la sociedad civil junto con los organismos políticos a diferentes niveles resulta crucial para debatir las implicaciones geopolíticas, así como las preocupaciones medioambientales que rodean a las operaciones de extracción de litio.
“…Following on from the developments outlined above, the energy transition currently advanced in the Global North and worldwide is directly related to the increasing demand for certain strategic raw materials. This results in specific socio-territorial constellations in areas of resource extraction such as Argentina, Bolivia or Chile (Puente & Argento, 2015;Dorn & Gundermann, 2022;Lorca et al, 2022). However, the particular dynamics of commodity extraction always arise in interplay with national and regional 'development and modernization' policies.…”
Section: Green Extractivism In Latin Americamentioning
confidence: 99%
“…However, increasing investment in technological solutions such as electromobility is also accompanied by a growing demand for certain strategic raw materials, resulting in a new 'green' resource frontier in many places, including Latin America. Particularly in the case of lithium mining in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile, several studies have recently analyzed and documented the associated pressures on land, ecosystems, livelihood, and lifestyles (Dorn & Gundermann, 2022;Forget & Bos, 2022). On the one hand, embedding commodities in a discourse of climate policy imperative raises questions for resource governance.…”
Drawing on various empirical examples (e.g. lithium, green hydrogen, REDD+), several studies point out that the global energy transition continues to be based on the geographic externalization of labour, natural resources, and sinks. The energy transition thus increases the pressure on natural resources in Latin America and reproduces the continent's position as the world's raw material supplier. This is increasingly referred to as 'green colonialism' by (scholar) activists. Moving past a merely provocative catchphrase, in this paper, I discuss the analytical implications and value of the term green colonialism for normative politicalecological research. In so doing, it becomes evident that the coloniality of the energy transition has to be understood as a political-epistemological project. This is of particular relevance for Latin America. Embedded in the hegemonic Euro-North American-centered modernity, the energy transition advances techno-optimist solutions and reproduces patterns of thought, knowledge and action. However, it soon becomes evident that the geographies of decarbonization are significantly more complex and shaped by multiple actors, policies, and strategies. Therefore, further research is needed on the geopolitics and geopolitical economy of the energy transition, going beyond the North-South dichotomy.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
