Mexico: Mining causes
ecocide in Coahuayana, Michoacan
The Italo-Argentine mining
company TERNIUM is planning to mine for iron minerals in nearly
2,000 hectares of tropical forest in the Municipality of Coahuayana
in the State of Michoacán (south-western Mexico). Among other negative
impacts, this activity will leave the whole Municipality (15 thousand
inhabitants) without water. The El Saucito River has already felt
the consequences as have the mountains and forest, and the villages
of Santa Maria Miramar, El Saucito, La Palmita, El Parotal and Achotan
are already suffering from the effects and have asked the authorities
to declare a Municipal Ecological Conservation Zone.
The communities have denounced
that “the company entered the territory to destroy our source of
life – the mountains, the forest and the river El Saucito. Trees
that were over one hundred years old, cedars, rosamoradas, mojos,
ceibas and many other species have been felled.” “With the felling
they have caused landslides with thousands of tons of silt and stones
ending up in the river, in addition to the oil they use for their
machinery.” In their letter of complaint to the authorities, the
communities consider this damage as “ecocide.”
In ecological terms the
company has already caused serious damage to the Municipality of
Coahuayana in the process of collecting, storing and releasing the
rainwater that supports life in this zone. For this reason the population
is opposing any activity at the La Colomera mine by TERNIUM as they
have observed over the past months how mining works have accelerated
pollution of the El Saucito River and the forest and all the living
beings that inhabit it. According to them “they are part of our
very selves as communities. This company is a stranger in this land
and doesn’t care if it destroys the forest and the river.” The communities’
greatest concern is that “in ten years time we will have become
practically lifeless villages.”
The ecosystem the local
population is defending is an area of incalculable ecological value
as it is a natural transition system between the tropical forest
ecosystem and the pine and oak forests and acts as a regulating
mechanism for the water cycle. Furthermore, it is known that these
forests contribute to balancing global climatic phenomena such as
the greenhouse effect and global warming by trapping and storing
carbon dioxide. This is very significant considering that this vegetation
grows very fast thanks to the tropical climate.
The forest is also the ultimate
refuge for endangered fauna, which is already feeling the effects
of this ecocide: river otters
(Lontra longicaudis), long-clawed freshwater prawns
(Macrobrachium spp), parrots (Amazona finschi y oratrix),
white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and the ocellated
turkey (Meleagris ocellata)
– which in fact was considered to be extinct but is still to be
found in the area – are examples of this.
At the beginning of 2008,
the TERNIUM mining company has entered the territory of the Municipality
of Coahuayana with the intention of working the iron mine in the
vicinity of El Saucito and Cerro de la Aguja. The authorities did
not react to defend the interests of the communities although the
company never notified the Municipality of the works nor did it
have any kind of permit. For this reason, the affected parties lodged
various complaints and insisted on getting an answer. Thus on 29
October representatives of the Federal Environmental Protection
Prosecutor (Procuraduría Federal de Protección al Ambiente - PROFEPA)
and from the mining company visited the area to check on the damage
caused to the forest and river. However the inspection took place
at night and only accompanied by representatives of the company,
preventing participation by the communities that had made the complaints.
The argument was that according to their regulations, there is no
obligation to invite the complaining party, but only the accused
party. That same day the regional representative of the Environmental
Secretariat (SEMARNAT) stated that the “SEMARNAT agency in Michoacán
has no record of any mining site in this Municipality, therefore
there can be no type of permit to carry out work in this respect.”
However, on the contrary PROFEPA affirms that the company does have
a permit, which the communities find suspicious.
For this reason, the inhabitants
are making two appeals: first that the Northeast area of the municipal
territory of Coahuayana ranging from the El Saucito river to the
Cerro de la Aguja be declared a Municipal Conservation Zone, so
that never again may any company or person feel they have the right
to come and destroy the natural resources to be found in this forest
and river. And secondly, that the concession to TERNIUM in the Municipality
of Coahuayan must be cancelled.
Finally, the inhabitants
state that:
“we do not want to negotiate,
we do not want the money or the jobs promised by the company because
there is no money nor any job that can pay for the life that is
being destroyed there. We only want our right to clean water respected
and our dignity and that of the forest respected.”
In spite of the company’s
attempts to create social division and confrontation through false
accusations against those resisting the mining works, the communities
pointed out that resistance has been peaceful at all times and explained
the following:
“We do not oppose the development
of our Municipality, provided that this development is not a threat
to our environment and to basic natural resources, such as water.”
It is encouraging that little
by little, the authorities are beginning to realize that the movement
is advancing beyond their own expectations.
Signed by:
The inhabitants of the communities
of El Parotal, La Palmita, Achotán, Santa Maria Miramar and El Saucito,
members of the peaceful civil resistance movement against the La
Colomera mine belonging to the TERNIUM company in the Municipality
of Coahuayana
On this thirteenth day of
the month of November of the year 2008
NO TO THE MINE, YES TO LIFE!!!
Note: In order to support
these communities, you are invited to sign a letter of protest addressed
to the local and national Mexican authorities, by entering
www.salvalaselva.org Here you will
find an action of protest by e-mail: NO to the death mining in Coahuayana,
Michoacán, Mexico.
