Mining conflicts and negotiated settlements

Through a comparison between two major mining projects – Las Bambas in Apurímac region and Quellaveco in Moquegua – the chapter seeks to revisit notions of mining conflict, drawing attention to how the majority of these are, in practice, “negotiated settlements” rather than outright rejection of mining per se. The contrast between the cases reveals how Las Bambas went from initial acceptance to protracted conflict while Quellaveco went from initial conflict to subsequent acceptance. The chapter draws attention to two specific causes of conflict: the difficulty for mining companies in defining which communities come within a mine's sphere of influence and the sort of corporate social responsibility policies to deploy toward affected communities. While Quellaveco is widely seen as a ‘success story’, conflict at Las Bambas rumbles on.