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ECUADOR PRESENTATION OF THE PILOT PROJECT: SMALL MINING AND MINING POLICY FOR TRADITIONAL AND SMALL-SCALE (ASM) SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE ECUADOR.
ECUADOR PRESENTATION OF THE PILOT PROJECT: SMALL MINING AND MINING POLICY FOR TRADITIONAL AND SMALL-SCALE (ASM) SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE ECUADOR.
By: Vicente Encalada (Engineering Geologist)
mining involves all the human and natural settings with a large multiplier effect, so they are necessary public policy.
Mining is an economic activity with high social responsibility that aims to extract and process the reserves of a reservoir (mineral profitable) for materials, metallic and nonmetallic compounds and pure elements (fine) to be used directly or used in the manufacture of materials, tools, equipment and utensils so necessary for daily living man.
So it is easy from the emotion, passion sometimes justified "conservationist" rush to proclaim the mining abandon but almost impossible, at the risk of returning to the caves, to give up mineral products and their derivatives industrial.
By including the definition of the term "high social responsibility, makes it different from other businesses like a grocery store, shipping fleet, agricultural export, banking, among others, because they must work in line with community interests and not cause destabilization in the natural environment.
A miner goes to a remote area, to seek an uncertain and unknown mineral deposit, make a risky investment sunk, if it finds a good thing just got a little more security to increase the capital invested and when the investigation concluded with the presence of a deposit with reservations characterized by being limited and not renewable, there is only a new medium to put more money in order to start operation or start a mine. Alongside the miners interact with the locals and has launched an association for long term relationship with different conditions, as mines are discovered are fixed and can not move until they remove the last ton of ore, trying to leave the renovated space with acceptable physical changes.
Mining has been divided by the physical and chemical properties of minerals extracted in metal and nonmetal, the type of tillage and underground; , and production rates in small, medium and large scale.
The definition of small-scale mining, is sometimes taken as a pejorative adjective for small, lower or not important and not at the adverbial sense of quantity in size or dimensions.
small-scale mining is an appropriate activity to exploit mineral deposits or small size limited volumes of ore bodies which are arranged in tight or narrow minable only successful if they apply appropriate methods and operations and how tank size. If there were no specialized experts and entrepreneurs small-scale operations, these mineral deposits could not be exploited positively with technologies of medium and large scale mining. small-scale mining is a specialty!
Usually in a country are the three classic levels of size of deposits, but there are cases in which the geology, deposits dominate one or more levels. Hence, it is not the will or the laws of men, if not natural laws that control the geological characteristics which determine the scales or levels of production of small, medium and large scale.
mining since the beginning of the Republic has been in the interest of the central government. The Great Liberator Simón Bolívar enacted to Colombia, including the Department of the South, today our country Ecuador, the first mining law, which includes mines as the property of the Republic. Recall that the Liberator Bolívar was a miner, was the owner of the mine Yaracuy State Aroa, Venezuela. Mina sought to negotiate with British companies to rehabilitate his precarious personal finances and help their colleagues who had left everything to American liberty. The Liberator taking total power but always had a clear difference between public purse and pocket personal. Never thought he and his comrades in arms could live public service, may die for their country but not live in the country.
rulers and have always been interested in mines, including oil, as an important sector for increasing national wealth and seek progress of their nations not only in Ecuador but throughout Latin America.
This interest in the mineral hot cause he even national political struggles that led to the nationalization of oil in Mexico, the nationalization of the tin mines in Bolivia, nationalization copper in Chile and in Argentina's nationalization of oil in the 70's.
In Ecuador, there is concern of public officials and citizens in general to find a new resource that serves to support the national economy in the past it was the cocoa, coffee, bananas and oil. All aspire to be the new mining industry.
The artisanal and small scale in the south of the country, with many work fronts in the provinces of Zamora, Azuay and El Oro, has meant the opening of many sources of employment with the automation and labor qualification work, but also with the claim by the alteration of water sources.
local communities feel the urge while beneficial income of small-scale mining activity, also have the desire to preserve harmony in their natural environment and the need for sustainable economic activities in the long term. Enthusiasts
conservationists warn not only environmental damage but will fuel the conflict in the very fragile and sensitive network. But since its ideological vision and care related to mining.
There is a wide public concern and the State, whether authorities the local and national mining activity, this creates a large area of \u200b\u200bintersection and interaction citizenship - state, which may be open to doubt and uncertainty and be completed by sound public policy to ensure correct use of the country's mineral resources .
The artisanal and small scale, has demonstrated the potential of its creative power to generate employment and economic activity without the financial disbursements of the State. It has increased employment and local economic movement.
arguments will not claim the inflow of funds to the treasury, but the great truth that small-scale mining has a major role in generating local employment and capitalization, and this contribution is as significant for local and national economic autonomy that leaves far behind the large numbers of patents, royalties and other contributions should perform, the large and medium industrial mining.
local employment and capitalization are more valuable than large tax revenues, it means human and social development are impossible to buy in the market, is the result of the efforts of daily living and building a culture and tradition which advocates a harmonious relationship among men and the changing but wonderful nature.
Yes!, Mining economy but we also want respect for human rights, decent jobs, participatory communities, clean rivers, tropical forests preserved, pristine stopped, finally, a multiple living landscape diversity.
Small miners have been organized and have risked their work and small economies to harass and obstruct the free development of rural quiet and remote places, forgotten in the names of the official maps, but to extract and mineral benefit, but have been some destabilizing impact as an end byproduct of production. Every action has an impact on actions positive and negative. Negative reactions can be mitigated with technical knowledge and ethical awareness.
In these critical circumstances, the Association for Responsible Mining (ARM), led by Ms. Cristina Echavarria, promoted in the Andean countries initiative "Fair Trade", which seeks to enforce a law, human, social, economic and responsible mining technique, which is consistent with the purpose Cooperative Bella Rica Mine, participating in the pilot project with the neighboring countries of Bolivia, Colombia and Peru.
The artisanal and small scale has been expanded in southern Ecuador, where there are also initiatives to medium industrial mining projects. The miners, citizenship and state are determined to promote this sector has been productive, willing to go the simple, sometimes messy quantitative growth of mining, a mining development of quality, so it is necessary to establish public policy to define the role of director State action and the different participation and responsibility of citizenship and miners in the construction of a mining generating better human conditions. The
mining policies in Ecuador have a very broad scope, however priori can point to five main lines of action:
• Training • Community Relations
• Sustainable development • tax incentives (no charge)
• Institutional Strengthening of the State to enhance its advisory role responsible small-scale mining.
small-scale mining, organized and responsible for Latin America, should be a core of human equality improvement and to build a globalized world not only interconnected by trade, but rather deeply interacting in pursuit of respect for the dignity and the preservation of human dynamics of nature.
The association of small-scale mining in Latin America is headed in the right direction, so it deserves to paraphrase the word of command of General José María Córdova in the victory of Ayacucho, affirming the decision of small miners in Ecuador and Latin America make socially responsible mining, with one voice that states: Miners discretion tools! Step winners!
Machala, June 5, 2009.
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