- Title: Mining industry affected by ongoing Bolivian drought
- Date: 6th December 2016
- Summary: ORURO, BOLIVIA (DECEMBER 2, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF MINE ENTRANCE FROM WHICH A TRAIN EMERGES, LOADED WITH MINERALS AND MINING WORKERS VARIOUS MINERS EXPLOITING MINE WITH THE USE OF DRILLS THAT ARE COOLED WITH WATER VARIOUS OF MINE INTERIOR GENERAL VIEW OF MINERS LEAVING MINE LA PAZ, BOLIVIA (DECEMBER 6, 2016) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) HECTOR CORDOVA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF BOLIVIAN STATE MINING FIRM COMIBOL, MINE ENGINEER AND ANALYST FOR BOLIVIA'S JUBILEE FOUNDATION, SAYING: "What we have seen from this year's statistics is that the levels of mineral production have held from last year's production and in some cases, they have increased. So the royalties and profits for the country will be greater. But that also means, more water consumption. When production has increased, more water has been used. There's no alternative." CORDOVA DURING INTERVIEW (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) HECTOR CORDOVA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF BOLIVIAN STATE MINING FIRM COMIBOL, MINE ENGINEER AND ANALYST FOR BOLIVIA'S JUBILEE FOUNDATION, SAYING: "In the case of Potosi, for example, half of Potosi's economy revolves around the mining operations at Cerro Rico. There are between 15 to 20 thousand people who work daily on this hill, extracting mineral and there are several plants which have been installed in the city of Potosi or on the outskirts to refine this mineral which is extracted from the hill. But with less water or without water, these operations are paralysed." ORURO, BOLIVIA (DECEMBER 2, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF COOPERATIVE MINERS WORKING (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) ENGINEER FROM THE ORURO TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY, OR UTO, MILTON PEREZ, SAYING: "For example, globally, we have 37 very important bodies of groundwater that are taxed for direct human consumption. Of these 37, 22 bodies of water, most of them on the African continent and a few in the north of America, have completely dried up. The remaining fifteen bodies of water, among them our body of water, we have in the highlands of which we consume and a second body we have in the Amazon, of which Santa Cruz and a little of Beni depend on. According to some studies, they are below fifty percent of its storage capacity. This has to draw our attention because if we continue consuming as we have, natural fluvial precipitation will not have the capacity to replenish the aquifers because we are using more water. At the moment we still have underground water. But we have to plan the proper use of this water." VARIOUS OF ORURO CITY VARIOUS OF DRIED UP WATER SOURCES ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF ORURO CITY VARIOUS OF TAILING DIKE USED BY PRIVATE MINE INTIRAYMI VARIOUS OF INTIRAYMI MINE VARIOUS OF TAILING DIKE WHERE WATER IS MIXED WITH SALT WATER
- Embargoed: 21st December 2016 20:24
- Keywords: Water shortages Bolivia drought population growth infrastructure mining projects
- Location: ORURO AND LA PAZ, BOLIVIA
- City: ORURO AND LA PAZ, BOLIVIA
- Country: Bolivia
- Reuters ID: LVA0015BQZ29V
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Water shortages caused by Bolivia's worst drought in 25 years have been exacerbated partly by booming mining projects, environmental and land rights campaigners have said.
According to local media, mining is one of the economic activities where the most water is used. In fact, the nearly 100,000 cubic meters of water used to produce 150,000 tons of mineral used to export from Bolivia on a daily basis, is equal to water consumed by capital city La Paz in two days.
A drought which forced Bolivia to declare a national state of emergency last month and which has affected more than 177,000 families across the country, coincides with a rise in the price of minerals in 2016 compared to last year.
This opportunity has generated unequal consequences for mining producers.
According to Hector Cordova, the former president of Bolivian state mining firm Comibol, who is now a mine engineer and analyst for Bolivia's Jubilee foundation, said the country's mineral production is not going to suffer a decline.
On the contrary, it will increase in volume to take advantage of the good prices but undoubtedly greater production translates to more water use, Cordova said.
"What we have seen from this year's statistics is that the levels of mineral production have held from last year's production and in some cases, they have increased. So the royalties and profits for the country will be greater. But that also means, more water consumption. When production has increased, more water has been used. There's no alternative," Cordova said.
Those who can hold on to their production are large mining operators who have the potential to make large investments to keep the constant flow of fossil water or groundwater, to maintain their production.
They are the ones who, to a certain extent, recycle the acid waters of their tail dams, huge pools where they pour in the heavy minerals, obligatory by law.
But there are small or cooperative operations, where the average income per miner is only $300 per month, who are unable to invest in tailings dams or to search for more water.
"In the case of the Potosi, half of Potosi's capital revolves around the mining operations of Cerro Rico. There are between 15 to 20 thousand people who work daily on this hill, extracting mineral and there are several plants which have been installed in the city of Potosi or on the outskirts to refine this mineral that is extracted off the hill. But with less water or without water, these operations are paralysed," added Cordova.
Potosi and Oruro, imminently mining departments, which house most of the 1,100 traditional cooperatives, have seen their production decline for that reason.
Cities like Potosi depend intrinsically on some 15,000 miners, who work in the mines of Cerro Rico everyday. But without water, the various mills set up on the skirts of the hill, are unable to process the minerals collected mostly by hand.
Milton Perez, an engineer at Oruro Technical University, or UTO, believes that while the work of mining can continue in the country, as long as environmental standards are met, groundwater sources in the world are declining.
Those in Bolivia are only at 50 percent of their capacity and if the pace of the use of these waters does not diminish, both the water for the industry and the water for human consumption, will eventually run dry.
"For example, globally, we have 37 very important bodies of groundwater that are taxed for direct human consumption. Of these 37, 22 bodies of water, most of them on the African continent and a few in the north of America, have completely dried up. The remaining fifteen bodies of water, among them our body of water, we have in the highlands of which we consume and a second body we have in the Amazon, of which Santa Cruz and a little of Beni depend on. According to some studies, they are below fifty percent of its storage capacity. This has to draw our attention because if we continue consuming as we have, natural fluvial precipitation will not have the capacity to replenish the aquifers because we are using more water. At the moment we still have underground water. But we have to plan the proper use of this water," Milton said.
Even bigger mines like Huanuni that produces tin, has had its production stopped for lack of water and a $50 million dollar plant ready to be used has not been inaugurated due to lack of water.
Worse yet, the mining industry has failed to comply with the law. For decades it has discharged its acid waters to rivers and lakes, contributing to the worsening of the drought.
Water sedimentation with heavy metals at the bottom of lakes and rivers has reduced the water mirror, causing more evaporation and contributing to worsening the water crisis.
Little of this can be taken into account because the market for fresh metals is booming. The manufacturing of cell phones, which require tin soldering and computers, are based on the use of freshly extracted metals. Recycling of metals is completely marginal and cannot fulfil the market.
On Tuesday (December 6) lawmaker, Victor Borda, made public his bill proposing that drinking water be banned from industries, businesses and mining activities that use large amounts of water.
The project, called the Concurrent Law for the Efficient Use of Drinking Water, provides obligations for users and sanctions for those who fail to do so. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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