SMA raises charges against Anglo American by Los Bronzes
Environment Superintendent indicted operation for handling acid drainage. The regulator described the offenses as serious.
After a series of audits carried out in Minera Los Bronzes from Anglo American, the Superintendence of the Environment (SMA) indicted against the operation. As detailed in the indictment, superintendency-developed in a previous audit in November 2013 -had noticed a number of defaults as provided in the Resolution of Environmental Qualification (RCA) of the initiative.
According to the minutes of inspection, major defaults are: emission of acid drainage from sterile tank, the water generated in the northern sector foot dump untreated drain to the lake number 6 and finally towards Río Blanco; besides, states that have not done alleviation programs, such as reforestation of Quilapilún reserves, fundo Cajón Las Tórtolas, fundo Los Nogales and Santa Filomena. After the audit, Anglo American filed a notice to the regulator considering their willingness to address identified weaknesses, listing their “dos and estimated compliance date.” However, the authority anyway gave the go-ahead to the process.
“Not resolved the source of acid drainage or has materialized a permanent solution to resolve the presence of acid drainage at the foot sterile tank,” says the Superintendent of Environment. Additionally, the record of charges against the mining manifests that “Once observed the presence of these drainage no monthly water quality monitoring is conducted where is the “Donoso sterile tank” of the project.
At the end points of its Objections Minute, the superintendence lists breaches as serious, because be framed as “facts, acts or omissions which seriously violate the measures to eliminate or minimize adverse effects of a project or activity, according to the provisions of the RCA”.
After the notification of the Superintendent of Environment, Los Bronces from Anglo American have two legal options: within 10 days to submit a plan of compliance or 15 days to file releases uplift charges established by the Superintendency of Environment.
Source: Pulso
