The environmental impact study for Xstrata’s Las Bambas copper project, in Apurimac, has been approved by Peru’s mining ministry.
Peruvian NGO CooperAccion presented a set of observations to the study, when it was still under evaluation, and some of the issues included:
– Has Xstrata fully identified the impacts of their operation on third party rights? What was the criteria for establishing the socioeconomic baseline that identified 18 communities in the area of influence of the project?
– How does Xstrata plan to address the water management of the Fuerabamba River basin? It should be noted that the company will occupy about 70% of the river basin and will take water from a lake system located on the higher area of operations. Additionally, some facilities such as tailings dams, the open pits and waste rock dumps will be built on the headwaters that feed the Fuerabamba river.
– How is the relocation of Fuerabamba community being resolved?
See http://www.minesandcommunities.org/article.php?a=10780.