Mining trade groups rally against WB report

Latin American mining associations have strongly rejected a World Bank preliminary report known as the Extractive Industries Review (EIR), which claimed the sector generates greater negative impacts than positive ones. The EIR process began in October 2000 after an NGO asked the WB to declare a moratorium on financing for extractive industries projects such as oil, gas and mining. The NGO says these activities have not contributed to sustainable development, or to combating poverty, causing the WB to evaluate the activities of these industries. The bank hired Emil Salin, the former Indonesian environment minister, to carry out the study. The conclusions of the preliminary report say there is clear evidence that in developing countries negative impacts of extractive industries are outweighing the benefits enjoyed. The benefits go to people who do not know and do not appreciate the sacrifices being made by local people, according to the report. The sector may be the one that most clearly reveals the "the uneven playing field that is the present global economy," in which the strong exploit the weak who have no resources, the preliminary report said. These and other conclusions generated protests from the Inter-American Mining Association (IMA) before the WB, saying the preliminary report is not impartial. "The report such as it is, is not acceptable to the associations forming the IMS, it is negative for mining without any solid arguments justifying the position taken," BNamericas heard from Carlos Guajardo, who represents the entity en Chile. The IMA called on member countries, with representation at the WB, to put pressure on the bank to have the report reviewed by some impartial agency. Eduardo Chaparro, economic affairs official at the Natural Resources and Infrastructure office of the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (Eclac), said the EIR has provoked a great deal of consternation among governments and sector associations. "There should be a broader discussion about the document in regional and sub-regional forums," he said. Gustavo Lagos, president of the International Copper Conference 2003, to be held in Santiago at the end of this year, said the study "is inclined toward intransigence.... I think the document won't carry much weight as it doesn't have the support of the countries concerned." Venezuela's mining chamber Camiven said that since May the deliberations to the EIR have been conducted by an advisory "Group of 10" members, made up mostly of NGOs, and Salin, which leaves little room to foment discussion on the issues involved. Meanwhile Peru's national mining, energy and petroleum society SNMPE, added its voice to the protests. Its manager Guillermo Albareda described the measures contained in the report as "prejudicial to the development of new investment." And the Colombian mining association, Asomineros, said it was worried about the pressure being brought to bear on extractive industries. "It's clear that mining has to be a sustainable activity over time, but to classify it as dangerous or toxic appears to me to be an extreme position that can't be good ... the preliminary EIR study is not objective," said Carlos Alberto Uribe, president of Asomineros. The countries represented at the IMA through associations and mining chambers are: Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica and Panama. The final EIR report is due out in December this year.