The province of Catamarca approved the ninth update of the Environmental Impact Report (IIA) for the Bajo La Alumbrera mining project, authorizing the reactivation of remaining exploitation phases at Bajo La Alumbrera and Bajo El Durazno. The measure was formalized through a resolution issued by the Ministry of Mining on April 30 and contemplates a six-year operational scheme between 2026 and 2031, together with new environmental, social, and monitoring obligations for the operating company.
By Panorama Minero
The approval covers the reactivation of Phase 13 of the Bajo La Alumbrera deposit (BLA) and Phases 4 and 5 of Bajo El Durazno (BED), including mining infrastructure refurbishment, slope stabilization, pit dewatering, ore transport to the processing plant, and reinforcement of the tailings dam.
According to the resolution, the schedule foresees preparatory works and access development to the Bajo El Durazno sector during the first year, while ore feeding to the plant is expected to resume from the second year onward. Simultaneous operations in both sectors would continue until 2031, the year projected for the closure of the new operational cycle.
Public Participation and Interinstitutional Evaluation
One of the central aspects of the process was the public participation stage implemented by the provincial Ministry of Mining, which included public consultations, technical workshops, interinstitutional inspections, and public hearings in the departments of Andalgalá and Belén.
Provincial technical agencies related to water resources, environment, archaeology, and mining social development participated in the process, together with indigenous communities and local stakeholders from the project’s direct area of influence.
The resolution states that the project is developed within a “widely characterized” environment, with more than twenty years of environmental monitoring and controls, and maintains that the proposed reactivation does not introduce significantly different impacts from those already evaluated in previous environmental impact declarations.
New Environmental Requirements and Permanent Monitoring
However, environmental approval was made subject to a set of technical and operational obligations for Minera Alumbrera Limited and YMAD related to external audits, participatory monitoring, and permanent environmental controls.
Among the main requirements are: monthly environmental audits; incorporation of real-time monitoring technology; updates to environmental control programs; participatory community oversight; reports on air, water, and biodiversity quality; and the submission of water balance studies along with water and carbon footprint indicators.
The resolution also establishes that activities may be suspended if environmental non-compliance or significant deviations from approved parameters are detected.
Local Employment and Regional Suppliers
Another aspect incorporated into the resolution is the obligation to prioritize the hiring of local labor and suppliers from the project’s direct area of influence, particularly from the departments of Andalgalá, Belén, and Santa María.
The Ministry of Mining established that workforce recruitment must be carried out exclusively through the provincial Labor Training Campus, while the company must submit annual procurement and contracting plans aimed at progressively increasing the participation of Catamarca-based suppliers within the mining value chain.
Additionally, the administrative act includes guidelines related to gender perspective, training programs, student internships, and the strengthening of complementary regional economic activities.
