ISSN: 2375-4397
Perez-Montes JE
Colombia
Research Article
Mining as the “Locomotive” of the Colombian Economy: It’s Real Cost
Author(s): Villar D*, Perez-Montes JE and Schaeffer DJ
Villar D*, Perez-Montes JE and Schaeffer DJ
For the past 15 years, the Colombian government has enacted laws promoting large-scale mining across the country with the banner of the sector becoming the engine for growth and development of the country. By declaring it an “activity for public utility and social interest”, expropriations, forced displacements, and licenses to operate in protected areas have been pervasive. Out of the 114 million hectares of the Colombian territory, the area dedicated to mining grew from 1.1 million hectares in 2001 to 5.34 million in 2010. Furthermore, a recent decree declared an area that encompasses 22.2 million hectares as “strategic mining sites” (Resolution 045 of 2012), which covers vast areas of the Amazon jungle and 18% of the national territory. The revenues have not translated in building up Colombia´s inadequate infrastructure or improving the productivity an.. View More»
DOI:
10.4172/2375-4397.1000194