Guatemala pledges to fight illegal mining to boost industry's public image

The Guatemalan government is focusing efforts on combating illegal mining to improve the public’s perception of the industry and the role of state authorities in ensuring that activities are sustainable, according to energy and mines minister Alberto Pimentel.

The official was outlining the country's policy to promote the sector during the Latin American Mining Meeting held in Panama City, where he said responsible, legal mining companies comply with international ESG standards.

"If what we want is to generate confidence that mining is going to be developed in the country in a sustainable way, in an environmentally friendly way, and we want public opinion to support this activity, what we have to do is generate confidence that oversight demands those standards... from companies,” Pimentel told the panel 'Public policies to promote Latin America as a sustainable supplier of critical minerals'.

The minister said that requires two things: 1) improving the oversight of mining companies, which implies providing the State with sufficient resources, and 2) “harshly sanctioning” those companies that are not complying with environmental standards.

"Companies that are legal, well, they are normally used to complying with these standards and do not get into big problems regarding environmental management," Pimentel claimed.

SOCIAL CONFLICT

During the past year, Guatemala’s mining industry has experienced a high degree of social conflict, including the rejection in an informal referendum by residents of the town of Asunción Mita of open pit extraction of gold and silver at the Cerro Blanco project of Canada’s Bluestone Resources.

The result was not recognized by the company nor by the energy and mines ministry, which claimed the vote had no legal basis. Last October, Bluestone reported that the constitutional court issued a final ruling that annulled the vote.

Authorities are evaluating a modification to the environmental permit presented by the company in November 2021 to reflect the change from an underground to an open pit operation.

"The problem, and where we really have to direct our attention, is those companies that are illegal, that are making use of the resources in a hidden way or... without state authorization," said Pimental. He urged the population to denounce those who are " presumably mining illegally." There is no suggestion that those include Bluestone.