In Mendoza, The discussion about mega-mining lit up the streets again. While thousands of residents mobilized in front of the provincial parliament, the Senate approved the environmental impact statement of the San Jorge mining project in the mountainous area of Uspallata. The decision, with 29 yes votes, 6 no votes and one abstentionprovoked strong questions from environmental organizations and opposition sectors, who denounced that the vote was carried out “With your back to the people”.
in the program “Welcome to the train” from Bravo TVthe discussant Fabiana Solano He reviewed the incident and expressed his surprise at the result: a part of Peronism, which had voted against it in the Chambers of Deputies, ended up supporting the project in the Senate. “What has happened in these weeks to change the perspective of this political sector?” he asked.
The state representative Jorge Difonso He was interviewed on the show and agreed that the session reflected a strong disconnect between lawmakers and citizens. “Parliament was fenced off, more than five hundred police officers guarded the entrance, while in the square more than ten thousand people defended the water,” he explained. He also stressed that the province is experiencing “a historic drought” and that large-scale mining exploitation is endangering “Mendoza’s most important treasure.”
According to Difonso, the project violates the Law 7722the main regulations governing mining activity in the province. He also denounced that opinions from the National University of Cuyo or CONICET were not taken into account and even that a critical report was “magically removed from the official website.”
In the conversation, the MP also warned of a repressive escalation in recent weeks. He recalled that demonstrators – including artists, tourism workers and a CONICET intern – were arrested “for exercising their right to protest”. “There were no violent profiles. The freedom of people who just wanted to defend the water was restricted,” he said.
Solano expressed surprise at the political shift between representatives and the Senate and asked whether there was external pressure. Difonso responded that only the president’s tweet had changed Javier Milei Support for the project, which indicated a possible alignment of the provincial governing party and parts of the PJ with the Casa Rosada.
The government has abolished mining taxes
Despite the approval of the legislature, the MP made it clear that the issue was not yet closed. He announced that they would speak Unconstitutionality lawsuits and complaints about non-compliance with environmental regulationsparticularly due to the violation of Law 7722. He also warned that there are “dozens of other projects” in the pipeline that could follow the same path if there is no judicial brake.
Meanwhile, the mobilizations continue. That same Wednesday, thousands of people marched through downtown Mendoza, but without much mainstream media coverage. “I thank you for focusing on this issue. It is very important for the people of Mendoza, but also for all Argentines,” concluded Difonso.
LB/DCQ
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