The climate talks are over, now back to mining

The UN-sponsored climate talks in Lima are have officially ended. A bland, water-down, unenforceable agreement was reached. The conference’s chairman, Peruvian Environment Minister Manuel Pulgar-Vidal said, “As a text it’s not perfect, but it includes the positions of the parties,” high praise indeed. Understandably, the talks’ organizers have already turned their attention to next year’s talks in Paris, France, claiming that that is when a real agreement will be hammered out. Please forgive our skepticism.

Meanwhile, the extractive sector continues to be the main – if not the only – driver of Peru’s economy. GDP growth information was released on Monday, and the announcement was headlined by the news that the fishing, manufacturing, and construction industries contracted sharply. The mining and hydrocarbon sectors, however, maintained their solid performance, growing by 3.7% in October over their October 2013 numbers. This increase was largely driven by increases in production.

In an unrelated report, the Toronto Star investigated the effectiveness of corporate social responsibility in the Peruvian mining sector: does tying aid and community development to mining really work? The report looked into the arrival of Toronto-based Barrick gold, the largest gold mining company in the world, to the tiny town of Quiruvilca. Barrick has invested considerably in the town’s infrastructure: many communities now have access to electricity, and roads, a police college, a hospital, and a new school have been built. Nonetheless, Mayor Walter Diaz Ramos lamented, “But the job opportunities, which are a direct benefit to the families, they’re insufficient.” The investigation concluded that the most impactful way to encourage development in the local community is through local sourcing. If mining companies truly want create sustainable development in the communities where they operate, they should focus on changing their supply chain, and not on CSR.