Propuesta de elementos de gestión minero-ambiental para una minería sostenible en el Municipio de Cogua, Cundinamarca

Abstract

Cogua is an important agricultural and livestock supplier for the Sabana Centro region; it also has the Neusa reservoir, a significant hydric reserve, built to provide water to surrounding populations; historically, construction material mining has been developed and used in the production of ceramics and blocks, among others, leading to the construction of a variety of infrastructure in the region. Traditionally, economic activities in the municipality are based on the use and exploitation of natural resources and the ecosystem services the territory provides. Nevertheless, a strong opposition to mining activities has been forged in the last years, joining more people each day, arguing that the origin of environmental problematics started by mining operations. The opposition to mining expansion in the area consists of many shortcomings of the interrelation between miners, community, environmental groups, and the institutions responsible for the authorization, control, and supervision of these activities. Throughout a study case analysis of mining title EIJ-151 by different methods, the most important social and environmental impacts were identified when mining projects are executed; additionally, these affectations were economically valued, determining by benefits-costs analysis the project’s character for the community; without leaving popular perceptions of extractives activities apart, through surveys and interviews; lead to obtain a broader and realistic vision of construction materials mining and the conflict’s origin in a municipality with long extractive tradition. Once information was collected, an action plan is proposed, understanding the most affected variables such as hydric resource, land-use changes, and projects’ inversions, as well as the situations that generates them which are the institutional debility, corruption, and no control over mining activities. The action plan moves over strategies that works on the demystification of mining, active community participation, citizen vigilance, reduction on influence traffic and the effective application of environmental compensation and restoration actions, not only in the specific areas of mining projects, but also in the critical environmental zones, with the aim of transforming social and political perspectives of the community about mining, taking and extending the benefits that extractive projects can provide in different scenarios, according to the local, regional and national institutions objectives about climate change, sustainable development, poverty reduction and some more that guarantee a social, environmental and economic welfare.