We choose copper mining as the sector to analyze
in Chile. We describe the dominant socio-technic regime, and we study the
productive, economic, environmental, and social problems associated to it.
There are important productive problems (falling ore
grades and problems with energy and fresh water supply) that demand constant
technological improvements. On the economic side, the country has an excessive
dependence on this non renewable resource that is extremely pollutant in its
extraction and processing. The sector’s R&D investment is insufficient
compared to other mining countries, and the sector has not produced much
linkages to the rest of the economy. Environmental problems are well known, and
include water, soil and air pollution, high demand for fresh water, and
indirect pollution due to an ever increasing demand for electricity. Finally,
there are social problems associated to employment, as well as other social
problems derived from the environmental ones (health problems, lack of fresh
water for consumption and agriculture).
Regarding the alternatives that could help solve these
problems, the relationship between productive and environmental problems is
interesting. Some technologies developed to tackle productive problems, such as
biolixiviation or the use of seawater, have at the same time much better
environmental outcomes than traditional technologies. The problem is that these
technological alternatives are not always technically feasible. With respect to
the social problems identified, there are not many initiatives directly addressing
them at this time. Finally, there have been a series of public and private
initiatives that aim at fostering the development of the sector’s suppliers,
the collaboration among the participants of the sector, and increasing the
investment in technological R&D. All of these are part of a national
strategy that aims at making innovation the growth engine of the Chilean
economy.
Four cases have been chosen for the study, two
of which correspond to the development of knowledge intensive suppliers, and the
other two to technologies that “repair” some of the problems associated to the
dominant regime.
The cases that are being studied are:
·
the Center for Mathematical Modeling at
Universidad de Chile
·
the biotechnology firm Aguamarina
·
the thickened tailings technology
·
the use of seawater in the productive process
Besides, there have been a series of interviews
to actors with extensive experience in the sector but not directly involoved in
these cases. These will help us contextualize the results obtained in the cases
under study.
