Celebrities join #SalvemosLaHiguera campaign to prevent the construction of port mining project Dominga
Press Release Date: March 1, 2017
Location: Santiago, Chile
Contact:
Anna Baxter | email: abaxter@oceana.org
Anna Baxter
Santiago, Chile — A video that has been shared by thousands of people on social networks in barely two hours, shows a number of celebrities such as Mariana Loyola, Mario Horton and María José Bello, as well as renowned people in the scientific community and residents of La Higuera, calling out to oppose the construction of port mining project Dominga.
Actress Mariana Loyola begins by saying “A mega mining project in the area of La Higuera is imminent”, while Mario Horton praises the unique beauty of this place. Actress Juanita Ringeling calls out to publicly oppose the project so that this commune does not become a new sacrifice zone.
The Andes Iron project has been questioned by entities such as Conaf and environmental organizations, which reported infractions in the project’s proceedings. In addition, Oceana revealed illegal actions performed by the Environmental Assessment Service (SEA in Spanish) of Coquimbo, yet this Service endorsed the approval of Dominga.
“It is outrageous that the Environmental Assessment Service endorses the approval of a project that did not provide relevant or essential information from the beginning in order to correctly assess the impact it would have on a unique marine ecosystem”, stated Liesbeth van der Meer, Executive Director of Oceana Chile. “We informed the SEA on the infractions that have been committed throughout the environmental process and the countless impacts of the project, but none of this has been considered”, added van der Meer.
However, the SEA’s endorsement is not the final word. During the next stage, the Environmental Assessment Commission of the Coquimbo Region will have to analyze the information and decide whether to approve or reject Dominga’s Environmental Qualification Resolution.
To increase support for the campaign, citizens are called to share their videos on social networks using hashtag #SalvemosLaHiguera, and petition the Environmental Assessment Commission to reject the Dominga project and prevent this unique marine ecosystem from becoming a new sacrifice zone. In addition, a number of social organizations of the Coquimbo Region have organized a candlelight vigil under the theme “Dominga, national shame”, to be held on Friday, March 3 at 8:00 pm, at the La Serena Plaza de Armas, the city’s main square.