Antofagasta butts heads with locals at Los Pelambres on environmental concerns

10th Mar 2015 07:07

Copper mining group Antofagasta has been told by a court that it must destroy at least part of its tailings dam at the Los Pelambres project in Chile as it is affecting the natural flow of a nearby river.The ruling came amid ongoing protests at the project by locals seeking action to help alleviate current drought conditions.The Civil Court of Los Vilos said Antofagasta's proposed works on the El Mauro tailings dam do not allow the natural flow of the Pupío stream to the town of Caimanes.Antofagasta believes it has gone beyond the requirements set out by the court and plans to appeal the decision.Since the El Mauro tailings dam began operating in 2008, there have been a series of legal claims by some members of the Caimanes community who live in the area.Protests by locals from the Choapa valley have been going on at Los Pelambres since 28 February, leading to the damaging of office and equipment at the mine entrance.The action has affected access to the mine and has resulted in lost production of around 5,000 tonnes of copper.