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Glaciers and mountain permafrost, are extremely important to ecological systems and essential for Argentina’s biodiversity survival. Their conservation is crucial for the water supply of runoff mountain rivers throughout the year, specially in semiarid Andes areas. These river basins are the key source of freshwater for millions of people and also irrigate lowlands that allow the development of economic activities. Unfortunately, these cryoforms have been damaged by human activities, particularly by the large-scale mining industry.
the program ‘Minería, Ambiente y Derechos Humanos’ (Mining, Environment and Human Rights Program) carried out by CEDHA, aims to achieve the effective protection of glaciers and periglacial environments. Since 2008, we have advocated actively in the passing of the national law of Minimum Budgets for the Protection of Glaciers and Periglacial Environment. The bill was sanctioned in Argentina, in 2010, after a difficult social and political process.
The complete and correct enforcement of the bill is urgent, due to the inaction and failure to comply the regulations established on the bill by the provincial authorities and mining projects. CEDHA’s work also includes the preparation of its own and participative inventory, and several technical reports about the actual impact on these resources as well as reports about the relationship between glaciers, human rights, the glaciosystem concept, and other related approaches.
The democratization of knowledge about these glacier ecosystems and the citizen participation, are the only way of ensuring the glaciers and periglacial environment protection as a true environmental policy in Argentina.
New Reports!
- 14 Lies by Barrick Gold on the Impact to Glaciers of Pascua Lama (Español)
- Report on Glaciers and Periglacial Environments in the Diaguita-Huascoaltino Indigenous Territory, Chile (Español)
- Report on Periglacial Environments and Mining in Argentina (Español – English)
- Report on Glaciers and Mining in La Rioja Province, Argentina (Exec Summary in English); (Informe completo en Español)
More of CEDHA’s work on glaciers:
