Penco on High Alert: SEA Recommends Approval for Controversial Rare Earth Mining Project as Communities Organize March Against Aclara

Original article: Penco en alerta: SEA recomienda aprobar proyecto de tierras raras y comunidades convocan marcha contra minera Aclara

The Environmental Evaluation Service (SEA) has recommended the approval of a controversial rare earth extraction project proposed by Aclara Resources to be set up in the hills of Penco-Lirquén, while local communities and social organizations call for a march against the multinational mining company.

The voting by the Environmental Evaluation Commission (COEVA) of the Biobío Region is scheduled for Monday, June 8, at the offices of the Regional Delegation. This political meeting, which will involve regional representatives from the government of José Antonio Kast, is crucial for the environmental processing of the project.

According to reports from Resumen, concerns arose last Friday when territorial groups discovered that the SEA had published the agenda for the session on its website, despite not having shared the Consolidated Evaluation Report (ICE).

The COEVA in Biobío is set to vote on the controversial rare earth extraction project proposed by Aclara Resources on June 8. While the SEA has already recommended approving the initiative, organized communities in Penco-Lirquén vehemently oppose the megaproject and have called for a march on Saturday, June 6.

This document is necessary to define the Environmental Qualification Resolution (RCA), and it was uploaded just hours later to the environmental processing file, the investigative media noted.

The meeting invitation from the Commission is issued by the Regional Presidential Delegation of Biobío, currently led by Julio Antivia. The regional ministers that compose the COEVA include those from the portfolios of Environment, Health, Economy, Public Works, Agriculture, Housing, Energy, Mining, and Transport.

For social organizations, the decision to call for a vote is not coincidental; rather, it reflects the pressures to advance the mining project amidst environmental concerns and the historical opposition from local communities.

The content of the ICE only heightened fears, as the SEA fully endorsed «the present report», which spans over 500 pages, providing technical approval for the controversial rare earth venture that involves an investment of US$130 million.

Additionally, the agency requested more than 30 relevant entities to endorse the document, setting a non-extendable deadline of June 4.

The swift pace of the process contrasts sharply with years of public opposition and the serious environmental impacts that critics and experts warn would accompany the installation of a mine in the urban area of Penco-Lirquén.

In response to this institutional push, social organizations and local communities quickly mobilized. For Saturday, June 6, just two days before the COEVA vote, they called for a march that will traverse the route from Penco to Lirquén.

The dual message is clear: unequivocally reject the Aclara Resources project while also showing solidarity with residents affected by recent forest fires in the region.

Tensions rise in the penquista territory as the voting date approaches, with the Kast government backing the controversial mining project, and Aclara Resources indicating that La Moneda could expedite the processing of it. The Penco-Lirquén community is aware that the COEVA vote is a key factor in this process, yet it does not guarantee that, if approved, the project will be constructed.

Furthermore, it has shown that just because a project has a favorable Environmental Qualification Resolution (RCA), it does not mean it will be built. The most recent example, as highlighted by Resumen, is the GNL Penco project in Concepción Bay, which, despite having favorable processing, has not been implemented due to ongoing public opposition.