In 2009, Bolivians who worried about the growing contamination of their waters from mining waste had reason for hope. That year, a new constitution came into being that guaranteed citizens the right to water and to “a healthy, protected and balanced environment.” Moreover, the government seemed serious about safeguarding that right, declaring an environmental emergency in the department of Oruro, and lining up grants worth millions of euros from the European Union to clean up toxic mining waste there. If Bolivians expected ongoing improvement in the country’s environmental controls on mining, however, their hopes were dashed on May 28 of this year, when a new Law of Mining and Metallurgy took effect. The law gives mining companies ever-greater rights in water-rich ecosystems and... [Log in to read more]