There are two conflicting lights in which Canadian mining projects in Latin American countries can be seen.

As reported in a series of articles by The Gazette’s Catherine Solyom, giant mining projects are regarded by some as an economic boon for underdeveloped countries, and by others as a potential environmental and social plague.

A prime example of such a venture is the landmark project undertaken by Canadian mining giant Barrick Gold at Pascua-Lama on the border of Chile and Argentina, the first open-pit gold mine straddling two countries. The project will employ 10,000 people in the construction phase and 1,650 to operate the mine for an anticipated quarter century after it goes into production.

Spinoff benefits include employment for people needed to feed and clothe the mine workers, as well as contributions the company is making to local communities in the name of corporate social responsibility. These include books for schools, adult-education programs, dental service and the digging of irrigation canals. In such respects, the company has stepped in where cash-strapped local governments have failed to provide basic necessities.

But all is not good with the venture, critics maintain. There are fears that the giant project, located amid glaciers that feed several rivers vital to local communities and their low-lying vineyards, could wreak long-term environmental havoc if glaciers are damaged by blasting, and if chemicals used in the mining process makes their way into river systems. There is concern over the health of workers breathing in noxious dust and fear of tremendous social change in traditional village life.

As mining investment by Canadian firms has escalated in recent years, so have conflicts pitting local folk against Canadian corporate interests. At the Pueblo Viejo mine in the Dominican Republic, 25 people were injured in a clash with police during a protest against a Barrick project in September, and at another in Peru, one person was killed the same month. Complaints against the company include contamination of water supplies and its influence in the expropriation of communal lands.

As investment in such ventures has increased, along with the potential for returns to the Canadian treasury from increased corporate profits, the Canadian government has stepped up its role in promoting and defending Canadian mining interests abroad. One notable way this is being done is through tying aid initiatives by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) to mining projects by Canadian private companies in resource rich countries. This represents a change in CIDA’s traditional mission in developing countries.

This, too, can be seen in opposing lights. On the one hand, critics might well view it as a taxpayer-funded subsidy to the mining companies, to help quell local protests. On the other hand, at least from the federal government’s point of view, as expressed by Julian Fantino, the minister responsible for CIDA, such initiatives make for double-barrelled efforts that help developing countries transition to more productive economies.