Chile approves an environmental compliance plan for the lithium company SQM

The environmental regulator Chile approved an expected compliance plan (PdC) of the lithium producer SQM for the equivalent of about 52 million dollars, which contemplates the progressive reduction of the water and brine consumed by the Salar de Atacama.

The Environment Superintendence (SMA) explained that the new program includes observations made by the Antofagasta Environmental Court in its July 2020 ruling.

“The PdC contemplates 52 actions and measures presented to correct the infractions detected in this auditable unit, whose sanctioning procedure began in November 2016, after this Superintendency detected six infractions in said operation,” he said.

The approval of the plan had been a headache for the miner, as it moves forward with its plan to expand its operations amid growing demand for the light metal used in electric car batteries.

“As a company, we have executed a large part of the measures that form part of the POC approved and we hope to implement all the commitments assumed with the authority and the communities in the coming weeks,” SQM said.

Among the faults detected were the overextraction of brine; affectation of carob trees; delivery of incomplete information to the authorities, among others.

The plan establishes the application of a staggered reduction in the maximum brine extraction limit until it reaches 822 liters per second from 2027, a little less than 50% of the authorized extraction; and reduce the total flow of industrial water also by 50 percent.

The water around the vast Salar de Atacama, both fresh and brine, has long been a sticking point for miners operating in the world’s driest desert, home to nearly a quarter of the world’s current supply of lithium. planet.

In April of this year, the State Defense Council (CDE) sued BHP, Antofagasta and Albemarle mines for irregularities in the extraction from an aquifer in the area, which would have impacted the fragile ecosystem.