Mining in the Colombian Páramo: The Ongoing Struggle to Halt Eco Oro's Angostura Project in Santurbán

Oct 26, 2016 | Committee for the Defense of Water and the Santurbán Páramo, the Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense, and the Center for International Environmental Law
Washington, DC
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The Colombian páramos (high altitude wetlands) are unique and sensitive ecosystems that provide the country with 70% of its potable water. The case of Eco Oro, a Canadian mining company (formally Greystar Resources), is emblematic of Colombia's ongoing battle to protect the páramo. The company's Angostura project straddles the Santurbán páramo, which provides drinking water for approximately 2 million inhabitants in Bucaramanga and surrounding areas. The project is currently halted, and in March 2016, the company notified the Colombian government of its intention to sue using investor-state dispute settlement under the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement.

Eco Oro has received repeated investments from the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank, and after a complaint filed by a coalition of organizations, the investments were found to be in violation of IFC performance standards. (There is now a call for IFC to divest - you can sign the petition here.)

Join us for a conversation on the ongoing campaign to protect the Santurbán Páramo, and hear updates directly from local experts.