TAZ: Mr. -N Lopes Pasis, its organization EcologoGyas en transión, filed a complaint with the EU commission against the receipt of six mining regions in Spain in the list of “strategic projects”. Why?
Christobal Lopez Pasis: These projects will harm the environment. Some of these projects are already working. Some of them have a long list of punishments, withdrawal and re -training. For example, the developer of the Mine Las Cruces project in the province of Seville was convicted, because the supply of groundwater, that thousands of people supplied with water were repeatedly contaminated. Aguablanca in Extradura works without permission and is now trying to continue with a legally expired environmental impact. Here, water also have high values of mercury, cadmium and selenium. The La Parrilla mine – also in Extradura – was even closed from strong pollution and ended with a fine. These are just the worst examples.
TAZ: Is it possible to break it safer if the EU classifies these mines as strategic projects?
Lopez PAZ: The mining industry is damage to the environment for yourself. Of course, if everything is done correctly, it can prevent damage. If it does not break on open mines, further processing occurs in the halls, and water is not used, this helps to avoid pollution. But this is not so. The work is always open in Spain, the dust of the mines pollutes the entire territory, the wastewater ends with large pools. In addition, most mines have only very low income. The material that I was looking for often only one percent of the dismantling, and it turns out with great efforts. This leads to a huge overhaul and a large amount of wastewater, for example, with copper and gold. Questions that should be operated are often not very rich. But the fact that it was not profitable in the past is that it is thanks to the growing demand and the growing prices today.
In an interview: Pazo
Christobal Lopez Pazo, 56, for eight years participated in Ecogology En Acción and has been coordinating its mining policy for three years.
TAZ: Why is the Overage the problem?
Lopez PAZ: Unfortunately, production is not only produced after we are looking for. Where there is a desired metal, there are usually other metals that are undesirable and even very toxic, such as lead, mercury, cadmium, to radioactive elements.
TAZ: Where does raw materials, for example, without production, for example, for energy transition?
Lopez PAZ: When the mining company arrived in the region 80 or 100 years ago, people celebrated sparkling wine. Today they pack their suitcases or go to barricades. Why? Because everyone now knows how mining works, how they pollute everything. And almost no mine remains again after the breakdown, as is actually prescribed. It is too expensive for companies. The operating company usually registers bankruptcy, so the parent company cannot be held accountable because the complex network of the company is interconnected, many of which are in a tax paradise. Not in order to maintain taxes, but so that they could not be held accountable.
TAZ: Could you solve the problem using less and more processing?
Lopez PAZ: In addition to several metals in the EU, effective processing is not carried out. With many metals, the processing level is less than 2 percent, it is cheaper to continue to decline. If mining companies had to bear environmental costs for their projects, it would be different.
TAZ: Cover more of the processing of necessity?
Lopez PAZ: No, definitely not …
Taz: … if we do not dismantle here, this will happen in the global south. There, working conditions and leading principles of the environment are weaker than here. Is it not better to manage the prey of minerals in Europe in accordance with European requirements?
Lopez PAZ: Viewed from Spain, we must carefully cope with the term “global south”. The production for mining, for example, in South America and even in China than here. There are mines with open sewer pools on the upper river runs and with broken panels that are not allowed to China. Of course, such publications do not coincide. In South America, they were tightened with many deaths after several serious accidents.
TAZ: A serious accident occurred here 27 years ago. In the Aznalekollar in the south of Spain, a dam of reservoir for poisonous wastewater broke. The whole region was polluted. Was the laws changed after that?
Lopez PAZ: No, nothing happened. The operating company went bankrupt. The group standing behind it has never been held accountable. Now he even received the approval of the resumption of the company with the same method of degradation and the same control of wastewater as then. And again, this is a local operating company, and the other in a tax paradise, which was interconnected in order to hide the duties, if anything happens.
TAZ: How will another prey be possible?
Lopez PAZ: Open production is prohibited in some of Central America. In Austria, examples of subthack are given in which the material is transported to the corresponding systems in pipes. The metal is obtained in closed halls and dry. Thus, environmental pollution is largely excluded. Companies must be liable. It cannot be that you collect profit and pay the general public for damage. No one will understand that the bakery will weaken the entire street opposite, and nothing happens. Why do we allow this to the mines?
