Hydrogeochemical Engineering Research and Outreach (HERO) Group |
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Catchment Management and Mining Impacts in Arid and Semi-Arid South America
| Contract No. INCO-CT2006-032539 funded by the European Commission through its FP6 International Cooperation Programme |
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Background
More than 25% of South America is arid or semi-arid. A general lack of rational water management systems hinders the sustenance or recovery of ecosystems and human communities in these areas. The twin scourges of erosion and salinisation are prone to exacerbation by various human activities. Mining potentially has one of the highest environmental impacts, yet it contributes more to legal export earnings in the region than any other sector. There is clearly a need to develop new approaches to river-basin management in order to ensure harmony between important economic activities and sustainable management of water resources.
Aims and Objectives
CAMINAR aims to inform policy options and to develop practical strategies and technologies for the sustainable management of mining-impacted river-basins in arid and semi-arid South America, focusing on three demonstration catchments in Peru, Bolivia and Chile. CAMINAR pursues the following objectives:
- Establish forums for dialogue at both national and regional levels on the ecological and water resources impacts of mining in arid / semi-arid river basins.
- Critically evaluate the effectiveness of existing regulatory strategies for mining in arid / semi-arid areas through case studies of selected river-basins in Peru, Bolivia and Chile.
- Develop guidelines for integrated water resources and ecosystem management in arid / semi-arid zones of South America with particular emphasis on mining impacts.
- Develop decision support tools to facilitate participatory water management planning.
- Derive a set of principles for future policy development and implementation to protect fragile ecosystems and dependant human communities in arid / semi-arid regions.
Impacts
CAMINAR will seek to have impact at three levels:
River-basin Level:
CAMINAR will implement a wide process of social involvement in three river-basins in Peru, Bolivia and Chile. The project will develop management plans and decision support tools for the studied basins.
National Level:
CAMINAR will involve stakeholders at the policy-making levels in Peru, Bolivia and Chile. The project will produce policy options for the management of arid and semi arid ecosystems.
Regional Level:
CAMINAR will initiate a process of regional dialogue on core issues in South America, with the aim of making a unique contribution to wider cooperation in the region.
Participants
| Organization | Principal Investigator | Contact Email |
| Newcastle University, UK (Coordinator) | Prof Paul Younger Dr Jaime Amezaga Tobias Rötting |
Paul.Younger@newcastle.ac.uk J.M.Amezaga@newcastle.ac.uk Tobias.Roetting@newcastle.ac.uk |
| Asociación Civil Labor, Peru | Carlos Abanto | laborlima@labor.org.pe |
| Universidad Nacional de San Agustín de Arequipa, Peru | Dr Percy Jiménez | ireca@unsa.edu.pe |
| Universidad Mayor de San Andrés, Bolivia | Prof Jorge Quintanilla | hidroqui@entelnet.bo |
| Centro de Estudios Ecológicos y Desarrollo Integral, Bolivia | Dr José Lorini | ceedi@unete.com.bo |
| Water Center for Arid and Semi-Arid Zones in Latin America and the Caribbean, Chile | Dr Guido Soto
Dr Ricardo Oyarzún |
gsoto@cazalac.org ricardo.oyarzun@ceaza.cl |
| Water Management Consultants, Chile | Christopher Beggs | cbeggs@watermc.com |
| Universidad de Oviedo, Spain | Prof Jorge Loredo | jloredo@uniovi.es |
| Instituto Superior Técnico, Portugal | Prof Luís Ribeiro | nlrib@alfa.ist.utl.pt |
| European Comission (Project Officer) |
Marialuisa Tamborra | Marialuisa.Tamborra@ec.europa.eu |
Documents
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