The Vice Governor of the Province of Mendoza, Hebe marriedcrossed Channel E, referring to the integration of mining into the productive matrix of Mendoza, after the Provincial Senate approved the environmental impact statement of the San Jorge Project (PSJ), one of the most important copper deposits.
Hebe Casado emphasized that mining is a deferred activity within the provincial economy. “Although Mendoza has a diversified production matrix, this has been in limbo for 17 years the integration into this productive matrix of mining“, he explained. As he explained, during the current government there had been sustained work to achieve an important point such as social acceptance.
The work is intended to provide security for citizens
“During these two years of management with Alfredo Cornejo we worked together to achieve the social license of this economic activity in Mendoza“, he noted, emphasizing that the axis of the process is transparency and communication: “We did it in different ways.” First, what it means, what steps to take, what the environmental controls will look like and how much water will be used“.
One of the pillars of this change was the update of the regulatory framework. “We have also done this on the legislative side, adopting a mining code of procedure last year All phases of prospecting, exploration, exploitation and rehabilitation of a mine are examined“, explained Casado. He also recalled that the province was working with an outdated standard: “The mining code of practice that we had was from 1947, and obviously environmental protection was not one of the premises in 1947“.
Likewise, he emphasized that the process included a strong public dissemination strategy: “The first thing we did was to spell it out well in the law what the processes would look like in the individual phasesAnd then communicate, communicate and communicate in different areas, in schools, with teachers, in NGOs, together with science, together with universities.” The goal was clear: “Bring certainty to citizens to achieve the social freedom that is fundamental to an activity like this.”
The relationship with those who oppose the mining project
Facing criticism from industries opposed to progress in mining, the respondent commented: “I actually don’t know if they are environmentalists. I classify them as particularly anti-miners” In the same vein, he added: “If they are environmentalists.” We are more environmentalists than they are because we carry out environmental controls of this century, of this moment in the world, and we do so within the framework of the law.”
Another central point of the adopted regulation is the establishment of an environmental compensation fund. “It is against this background that we created the Environmental Management Unit and the Mining Environmental Police that carries out permanent checks in the first, second and third category mines,” he explained.
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