Colombia grapples with future of giant coal mine as water dries up

Colombia’s largest coal mine El Cerrejon has fallen into the crosshairs of President Gustavo Petro, who blames open-pit mining for putting local communities through a major water crisis.

Huge black holes are ravaging the land in La Guajira, northern Colombia, after four decades of coal mining have drained the already dry, drought-stricken region.

Leftist leader Petro, who has championed environmental concerns, in July declared an “economic, social and environmental situation” in La Guajira, where poverty levels are at 67 percent, and many children die every year from malnutrition.

In August, during a visit by the Swiss president, Petro said he was looking for an “orderly exit” by Glencore, the Swiss mining giant that owns the mine.

El Cerrejon is the largest open-pit coal mine in Latin America, spanning more than 69,000 hectares (170,000 acres) of rugged terrain that is home to the nomadic, nomadic, nomadic Wayuu tribe. agriculture, and fishing.

Traditionally, they catch and store water in reservoirs known as “jagueyes.”

Petro said that most of the scarce water in the region is now controlled by the “agriculture, energy and coal” industries.

His state of emergency in the region prohibits the extension of mining contracts or the expansion of any existing projects.

In 2022, a United Nations report listed El Cerrejon as one of the 50 most polluted places in the world, saying that the mine has had “bad” effects on the Wayuu, and that the inhabitants living near it “have a lot of poison in their blood.” ”

Last month, the mine published on its website a rejection of the allegations in the report, emphasizing its investment in social and environmental projects.

The company also highlighted its efforts to improve water supply, including distributing water and building public infrastructure.

Economic shock

Experts say closing the mine, which produces 80,000 tons of coal a day and employs more than 12,000 workers – most of them from La Guajira – could be a major economic blow to the community and the country.

Coal mining accounts for 43 percent of La Guajira’s GDP, and 0.7 percent of Colombia as a whole, according to the Fedesarrollo research center.

The company released nine dollars to the government in 2022 in taxes and fees.

This money is “important to support important sectors such as health, water, education and roads,” the governor of the region, Diala Wilches, told a local radio station.

“If the extraction of coal from the El Cerrejon mine is limited or stopped suddenly, there will be a financial crisis … that will have to be compensated by the transfer of the government,” said Sergio Cabrales, a professor at the Universidad de los Andes e. Bogota.

The solution to this problem can be found in energy transitions.

La Guajira has high wind speeds and solar radiation, however projects to use them as the energy decreases, are hindered by territorial conflicts and local communities.

Cabrales says the alternative to the coal industry lies in “growing tourism … and the production of energy from renewable sources.” But this requires “time, national and international investment, and better leadership.”

El Cerrejon officials told AFP the company is “committed to continuing to operate responsibly” until its contract expires in 2034.