Copper and the Chilean Economy - Literature review Example

The economic structure of Chile is strongly reliant upon the mining sector of the nation. The produce which is extracted through the mining process comprises of gold, iron, silver, coal and most importantly copper. The significance of copper, as a mining product of the Chilean economy is reflected in the information provided by IBP USA (2009) which states that the country’s exports of copper singlehandedly account for more than thirty-three percent of the income generated by the state. Moreover, the nation’s dependence upon copper can also be observed through the utilization of several economic tools for GDP calculation. For example, as demonstrated by the statistics which were accumulated for the fiscal year of 1997, fifty percent of Chile’s exports comprised exclusively of mining products of which forty-two percent were exports of copper (Spilimbergo, 2002). Consequently, the mining sector’s contribution to Chile’s GDP was eight percent in the same year (Spilimbergo, 2002) while, it rose a staggering twenty percent in recent years (Roth, 2013). Assessing the implications of the Chilean economy’s dependence on the export of copper as a critical element of the nation’s economic structure, Roth (2013) cites insightful statistics which suggest that Chile is responsible for fulfilling one-third of the global demand for copper. Consequently, the exports of the red metal as a percentage of the Chilean economy’s total exports currently stand at sixty percent. Analysts like Roth (2013) postulate that a rise in copper prices in prior years has been partially responsible for triggering an expansion of the Chilean economy by six percent between the period of 2010 and 2012. While imminent problems including the deterioration of natural resources, declining rates of employee productivity and a spike in overall expenditures are compelling commentators to raise questions regarding the future of Chile’s economy it is evident that the mining industry, led by the extraction of copper is to remain at the forefront of the nation’s economic future. The assessment of the impact of mining activities and processes is a concept which is not limited to the examinations of environmentalists and biologists for establishing the extent to which prolonged mining activities have negatively impacted a habitat or the survival of a species on land and water. In fact, identifying the consequences of long-term mining ventures in an economy such as Chile is also an anthropological and sociological issue because the nature of the activity in areas where the mines are located poses several questions regarding the establishment of communal relationships and the perceptions of individuals who reside in settlements surrounding the mines. In the light of this consideration, this paper aims to analytically discuss the environmental, social and cultural implications of copper mining in Chile. In conclusion, the paper presents a proposal which objectively examines the steps which could be taken to solve the problems that have emerged as a consequence of the large-scale copper mining activity across Chile. The comprehensive research examining the environmental impact of copper mining in Chile by Higueras et al. (2004) focuses upon identifying the issues which have emerged in certain districts of Northern Chile as an outcome of extensive mining efforts. Therefore, the scope of the research is centered upon the Andacollo and Punitaqui districts of the Coquimbo region in the country which possesses a vast reserve of minerals and has been the focus of mining operations since the 16th century. Before proceeding towards conducting an environmental assessment of the mining-related pollution across the region it is important to identify the sources which cause environmental contamination during the course of mining activities. As noted by Higueras et al. (2004), comparable to the execution of other mining operations across the South American continent, mining operations in Chile are also characterized by the utilization of mercury to obtain gold while, the mining of copper still remains unregulated in certain locations across Northern part of the country. For the purpose of directing the conclusions of this paper to ascertain the effects of copper mining, the findings of the research presented by Higueras et al. (2004) have been limited to reporting the contamination levels of samples which have obtained from the following mining districts: 1) Small mining 2) Carmen and 3) Milagro/Los Mantos. Moreover, the nature of samples which have been gathered for this study comprise of “stream and mine waters, stream sediments, soils, flotation tailings, leaching piles, gases, and mine waste” (Higueras et al. 2004, p. 1858). As noted by Higueras et al. (2004), upon examination the samples of soil deposits and stream sediments collected from the district of Andacollo were characterized by an alarming level of contamination whereby, the concentrations of Cu were significantly greater than the normal scale. It has been reported that the alarming contamination of water bodies as a consequence of copper mining in the region was triggered by acid treatment which prompted concentration levels to hit 24mg/L Cu (Higueras et al., 2004). Accordingly, the findings which were reported for the district of Punitaqui indicated that high concentrations of Cu reaching to a staggering level of 1700-4000 ug/g had seeped into the soil across the location while, the water bodies in the vicinity were not as significantly impacted in comparison with the data which was collected by the samples from Andacollo region (Higueras et al., 2004). The researchers also established that the concentration levels were largely attributable to the mining centre of Los Mantos which relies upon both heap leaching and flotation as the two primary methods for developing copper ore (Higueras et al., 2004). Nonetheless, the conclusions of this study highlight that the foremost mining districts of Northern Chile – Andacollo and Punitaqui are faced with the prospect of experiencing an escalation in both Cu and Hg concentration levels in soil and stream samples. The implications of these study findings highlight the immediate need for enforcing environmental regulations on older mines across the region which are yet to impose and practice ISO standards that have been made mandatory as per government orders. While, the research of Higueras et al. (2004) establishes that mining activities which are not regulated for safeguarding the environment can gravely harm the areas adjoining the site, the study of Ramirez et al. (2005) aims to draw conclusions regarding the damaging effects of mining operations on coastal regions. In the present situation and with respect to the El Salvador mine in Chile which has been subject to several court actions for negatively impacting the environment and the species which reside in surrounding areas, it has been established that copper tailings are the foremost source of concern for environmentalists. As noted by Ramirez et al. (2005), copper tailings which are dumped without taking adequate treatment measures are specifically harmful because the encourage the accumulation of copper in water bodies. Moreover, it must also be stated that the dumping of untreated mine tailings is responsible for eradicating the population of algae and invertebrates in disposal sites, promoting a decline in biodiversity and enhancing the scale of adverse ecological consequences (Ramirez et al., 2005). A significant observation which has been developed during the investigative phases of this research highlights the presence of negative correlation between the existence of biodiversity and the accumulation of mining wastes in a specific area, such that the presence of high mining waste in an area predicts the lowest level of multiplicity and concentration of species in the same location (Ramirez et al., 2005). The application of this study and research analysis is conducive to ascertaining the development of associations between species and the concentration of copper which is discharged during the mining process. Moreover, another critical benefit which is received through the application of this study is that it allows researchers to identify the patterns of behavior or how biological communities are likely to respond to the dumping of Cu and other metal sediments. In this case, the assessment of sample data collected from the location revealed that the concentration of copper when accumulated in large quantities in fact possesses a high degree of toxicity (Ramirez et al., 2005). Henceforth, when species that are located at close proximity to these concentrations are exposed to this environment, their incidence is threatened by the escalated concentrations of metals which are produced during the process of mining activity thereby, establishing a negative correlation between the two variables (Ramirez et al., 2005). The incorporation of research findings which have been presented by Higueras et al. (2004) and Ramirez et al. (2005) suggests that copper mining in Chile’s northern region has been threatening the biodiversity of the region and contaminating both soil and stream sediments. This notion postulates that copper mining which is unregulated or based on traditional methods risks the survival and endurance of both flora and fauna which are exclusive to the region. Moreover, the activity also has the potential to damage the adjoining areas and habitats as indicated by the negative impact of the El Salvador mine on sandy beaches and coastal locations namely Caleta Palito and Chanaral Bay located in Northern Chile. Considering the sociological characteristics of families of mine workers which reside in what are termed as ‘mining towns’, Sharma and Rees (2007) note that analogous and even uniform characteristics of mining towns which maybe similar across geographic regions can be identified as 1) restricted access to resources 2) unavailability of adequate career and educational opportunities and 3) separation from friends and relatives. Within the context of Chilean mining towns such as Andacollo it can be identified that mining settlements experience certain inadequacies and do not qualify as ideal areas of residence because of certain characteristics such as discarded mining waste (Higueras et al., 2004). The examination of mining communities indicates that while; workers who are employed at the mines are faced with the risk of being injured or contracting an illness because of the workplace environment even the employees’ family are at risk of developing mental illness because of isolation and a predominantly patriarchal setup. This claim is evidenced by the research of Sharma and Rees (2007) whose study on an Australian mining town revealed that the domination of a patriarchal culture negatively impacted women and adversely affected their emotional and mental welfare because of the isolated nature of mining towns and settlements. The most crucial step which must be taken to eradicate the negative environmental consequences of mining is associated with the vast and comprehensive realm of policymaking. The uncertain circumstances of governance which prevailed in Chile prior to its arrival to a democratic setup of government in the last decade of the 20th century played a decisive role in promoting the acceptance of harmful and unregulated mining operations across the nation because the state lacked focus on developing a framework which could safeguard the environment and address critical concerns regarding the negative implications of copper mining operations. Commenting on the circumstances which emerged after the restoration of democracy in Chile more than two decades ago, Newbold (2007) asserts that the state’s priorities experienced a shift for the better as concerns regarding the environmental consequences of mining were acknowledged and the need to establish mechanisms for coping with this threat came at the forefront. In this regard, Chile developed two systematic frameworks namely the environmental management systems (EMSs) and imposing the regulation of securing an ISO 14001 to continue mining operations for coping with the environmental degradation which was triggered by the mining industry at large (Newbold, 2006). The research findings of Newbold (2006) establish that the government’s measures for coping with the environmental loss caused by mining operations have proved to be effective in the long-run as evidence indicates that in comparison with past decades, the country has been able to minimize the environmental loss caused by copper mining activities. However, there are certain obstacles and challenges with regard to this issue which are yet to be addressed and resolved. The foremost issue in this case is linked with the fact that despite of governmental regulations and demands to do so, certain mine operators and mining companies are yet to obtain an ISO 14001 certification (Newbold, 2006). The proposal which has been developed in this paper to address this problem and other relevant issues suggests that the government’s department or agency for environmental protection should establish a committee for identifying the companies which are yet to modify their mining activities, operations and processes to demonstrate compliance with the ISO 14001 certification. Secondly, it is the concerned committee should also set a deadline and communicate this decision to the concerned mining facilities that a failure to comply with the ISO 14001 in the given time period would result in a direct termination of the company’s license to operate a mining facility in Chile. Another compelling issue which is associated with the environmental problem of copper mining in the country is that of old mines and dumping sites which have been abandoned without proper disposal. These sites are highly dangerous for the inhabitants of the area and the ecosystems because research has established that high concentrations of metal can damage water bodies, soil sediments and the biodiversity of the location. Since, the owners of these abandoned mining operations may not be identified readily nor would it be possible for the government to ascertain the companies which have been responsible for discarding untreated copper tailings it would be more pragmatic to address the issue directly. Thus, a cleanup mission should be planned and implemented to address this problem effectively. In the first step for executing this model, the concerned governmental agencies should locate abandoned mining operations and encourage local authorities to report sightings of untreated mine tailings in former mine towns and settlements. Once this phase of the process has been completed, the next step would involve initiating the disposal of waste and mine tailings in accordance with environmentally compliant laws and regulations. Accordingly, it is important to highlight that the sociological issues facing mine settlements need to be resolved on an immediate basis to enhance the productivity of worker, ensure the protection of their rights and promote the emotional wellbeing of their families. The elimination of work-related stressors to promote emotional stability amongst residents of mine settlements includes reducing working hours, providing employees and their families with educational and health facilities and establishing counselling centers in mining towns for psychiatric and psychological evaluations (Sharma and Rees, 2007). As noted by Sharma and Rees (2007), the psychological demands of a job in the mining field and other industries is often overlooked and even when employers acknowledge the significance of this issue they often fail to notice how the workers’ families maybe coping with living in a largely isolated community. This recognition poses several implications regarding the employers’ responsibility for providing the employees and their families with adequate physical and psychological health plans and benefits and understanding the taxing circumstances under which the employees are expected to work. The issues and subsequent solutions which have been presented in this paper postulate that by adopting certain measures and initiating appropriate mechanisms to cope with the environmental and sociological problems of copper mining, the adverse impacts of the activity can be effectively reduced in the short-run and completely eliminated through the adoption of an inclusive long-term policy to regulate copper mining operations in the country. References Higueras, P., Oyarzun, R., Oyarzún, J., Maturana, H., Lillo, J., & Morata, D. (2004). Environmental assessment of copper–gold–mercury mining in the Andacollo and Punitaqui districts, northern Chile. Applied Geochemistry, 19(11), 1855-1864. IBP USA (2009). Chile Mineral & Mining Sector Investment And Business Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Regulations. s.l.: International Business Publications Inc. Newbold, J. (2006). Chiles environmental momentum: ISO 14001 and the large-scale mining industry–case studies from the state and private sector. Journal of Cleaner Production, 14(3), 248-261. Ramirez, M., Massolo, S., Frache, R., & Correa, J. A. (2005). Metal speciation and environmental impact on sandy beaches due to El Salvador copper mine, Chile. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 50(1), 62-72. Roth, C. (2013). Chile’s Copper Dependence Casts Shadow Over Its Economy. The Wall Street Journal. Available online at [26th June, 2014] Sharma, S., & Rees, S. (2007). Consideration of the determinants of womens mental health in remote Australian mining towns. Australian Journal of Rural Health, 15(1), 1-7. Spilimbergo, A. (2002). Copper and the Chilean economy, 1960-98. The Journal of Policy Reform, 5(2), 115-126. Read More