On 8 October 2012, the Honduran Congress passed a law (Legislative Decree 127-2012) creating the Montaña de Botaderos National Park to protect local biodiversity and ecosystems and as part of commitments to maintain the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (in 2017, the park was renamed Montaña de Botaderos Carlos Escaleras National Park, after a murdered environmental activist).Continue reading “2012-2013 Creation and reconfiguration of Montaña de Botaderos National Park”
Subsoil Violated Right Archives
2019 Constitutional challenge to decree modifying Montaña de Botaderos National Park
On 25 February 2019, members of Municipal Committee in Defence of Common and Public Goods (CMDBCP) and the San Alonso Rodríguez Foundation, and accompanied by the Coalition Against Impunity, filed a constitutional challenge or judicial review (recurso de inconstitucionalidad) of Decree 252-2013 which had reduced the dimensions of the Core Zones of Montaña de BotaderosContinue reading “2019 Constitutional challenge to decree modifying Montaña de Botaderos National Park”
2014- Citizen Transborder Treaty Drafting [Cerro Blanco]
For Salvadoran NGOs involved in the Mesa Nacional frente a la Minería Metálica (National Roundtable against Metallic Mining), the regulation of transborder water resources in Central America has been an issue for many years. Their concerns emerged out of the discovery that both Guatemala and Honduras have received requests for exploration and exploitation of mineralsContinue reading “2014- Citizen Transborder Treaty Drafting [Cerro Blanco]”
2006 De facto Moratorium on Mining imposed by successive Salvadoran governments
In 2006, the Salvadoran government, led by the traditionally business-friendly party, Nationalist Republican Alliance (ARENA) imposed a “de facto” moratorium on all mineral-related concessions in El Salvador (Montoya, 2024). While not expressed in any formal document or policy, the moratorium was implicit in the fact that the government never granted Pacific Rim Mining Corporation anContinue reading “2006 De facto Moratorium on Mining imposed by successive Salvadoran governments”
2009-2016 Pacific Rim International Investment Arbitration against El Salvador
In April 2009, Pacific Rim Mining Corporation (“Pacific Rim Corp.”), through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Pac Rim Cayman LLC (“PRC”, together referred to as “Pacific Rim”), commenced an Arbitration action under the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) Convention seeking damages of more than US$314 million from El Salvador for unlawfully terminating its rightsContinue reading “2009-2016 Pacific Rim International Investment Arbitration against El Salvador”
2006- Popular Law Drafting and Legislative Activities on the Right to Water
In El Salvador, the right to water and legislative initiatives protecting that right are closely linked to the socio-environmental and political struggle around metallic mining. For instance, in 2006 (the same year that a popular draft law to ban metallic mining was first proposed), a General Water Law was drafted by a group of aboutContinue reading “2006- Popular Law Drafting and Legislative Activities on the Right to Water”
2006-2017 The Mesa Nacional drafts and proposes Legislative Bans on Metallic Mining
The National Roundtable against Metallic Mining in El Salvador (Mesa Nacional) has been the driving force behind popular law-drafting efforts around the issue of metallic mining and its relation to human and environmental rights. The Mesa Nacional is an umbrella organization that began in 2005 in an effort to bring together social, environmental, and religiousContinue reading “2006-2017 The Mesa Nacional drafts and proposes Legislative Bans on Metallic Mining”
2017 El Salvador passes Legislative Ban on Metallic Mining
On 29 March 2017, the Legislative Assembly approved a law prohibiting metallic mining in El Salvador. The law enjoyed cross-party support, passing with 69 out of 84 votes, well over the qualifying majority (Reuters, 2017; Montoya, 2021).The law prohibits all exploration, extraction and processing of metals, whether in open pits or underground, and officially enteredContinue reading “2017 El Salvador passes Legislative Ban on Metallic Mining”
2015- Citizen Development of Mining Legislation Draft
According to an interview conducted with a representative of the Humboldt Centre as part of The Legal Cultures of the Subsoil project, in 2015 the Centre began to develop a new proposed mining law that aimed at establishing an effective mechanism for regulating, controlling, and monitoring mining operations, including the taxation and royalty rules, theContinue reading “2015- Citizen Development of Mining Legislation Draft”
2010 Administrative Complaint filed by the Units of Environmental Management (UGA) from six municipalities
In October 2010, Units of Environmental Management (UGA) from six municipalities, including Santo Domingo and La Libertad, filed an administrative complaint with the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources (MARENA) and the Office of the State Prosecutor (PGR) on the basis that the exploration activities conducted by B2Gold through its wholly owned subsidiary, DesarrolloContinue reading “2010 Administrative Complaint filed by the Units of Environmental Management (UGA) from six municipalities”
