14th April 2020The lawsuit said BHP's extraction of water to service its Escondida copper mine - the world's largest - between 1990 and 2017, caused a "severe decline" in the levels of the salt flat's acquifer, "partially or totally" caused the loss of wetlands and vegetation and compromised the survival of its fauna.
"This sustained extraction was such that the aquifer cannot recover on its own within 100 years," the complaint added, according to the court.
https://www.copyright link/world/south-america/bhp-faces-water-use-lawsuit-brought-by-chilean-state-20200416-p54k94
Water has increasingly become a sticking point for major miners operating in Chile.
Lithium miner SQM faced a similar legal challenge brought by local residents. Top competitor Albemarle proposed a monitoring network to assess water levels in the Atacama, the world’s driest desert, where they both operate.
