The Government of Colombia, led by the far-right Abelardo de la Espriella, has nullified this Wednesday, citing possible irregularities, a resolution from the previous Executive of Gustavo Petro that banned mining activities in the micro-basin of the La Baja creek, associated with the Santurbán massif, located between the departments of Santander and Norte de Santander, in the northeast of the country.
"The government of President Abelardo De La Espriella opens a new stage for Santurbán: an environmental protection based on science and law, built with the communities and aimed at guaranteeing water and biodiversity without disregarding the security and prosperity of the territories," the Ministry of Environment stated in a statement.
The provision that protected 1,499 hectares of the La Baja creek, near the municipality of California, was signed on August 6, just one day before the outgoing government's term ended. The current Executive maintains that the process was carried out without fulfilling all legal requirements, including resolving a pending recusal against then-Minister Irene Vélez and despite the existence of a "tutela admitted in progress for possible violation of rights."
The Ministry has added that such irregularities could lead to the judicial annulment of the norm and leave the area in a legal limbo, which is why they have decided to initiate "a new comprehensive technical and legal evaluation" to define the appropriate protection formula for those 1,499 hectares.
"The revocation does not constitute a statement against the technical, scientific, or environmental foundations that gave rise to the protection initiative of the micro-basin of the La Baja creek. It is a decision aimed at ensuring that the process proceeds under the required legal and procedural conditions," the portfolio concluded.
The Committee for the Defense of Water and the Páramo of Santurbán has denounced that "while the country faces the emergency due to the earthquake," the Ministry has taken the opportunity to "overturn the first resolution that prohibits the Soto Norte project of the multinational mining company Aris Mining in Santurbán."
"The water of nearly two million people is at risk. We call on citizens to support the legal actions and mobilizations that we will undertake to defend Santurbán. The water and the future of Santurbán and other páramos in the country are not for sale, they are defended," he has stated on social media.
The current Minister of Environment, Fabio Arjona, has shown support for mining exploitation in the area by the company Iris Mining, despite the fact that the previous government had protected these hectares by appealing to the principle of ecosystem and water connectivity and defending that the area —although it is located outside the official limits of the Santurbán páramo— is an inseparable part of the massif.
"We need to move forward, delineate the páramo, look at which areas can be utilized, formalize the mining that exists there. If there is industrial mining around, it could help with the formalization. There is a Canadian company called Iris Mining. Iris Mining has 38,000 formalized miners in a mine it has in Antioquia. It is an example of what could be done in Santurbán," he declared.