Mega Projects for Mega Capital

by Voices on the Border El Salvador staff, April 2007

 

There was recently a very important meeting in Mexico to push forward the Plan Puebla Panama .  The PPP, as it is known, was announced by Mexican President Vicente Fox in 2001 in an attempt to clear the way for the mega-projects required by the large transnational companies of Mexico and the United States.  PPP is widely seen as a component of a larger plan to take control of the resources and markets of Central America. 

 

Many people have heard of the School of Assassins, where Latin American military personnel are trained to combat the opposition of their own civilian populations.  Many also know of the fundamental changes to the legal framework that regulates trade, encapsulated in the Central American Free Trade Agreement as part of an attempt by the US government to piece together a Free Trade Area of the Americas.  However, far fewer people know about the mega projects that accompany this new colonizing push by international capital.  What is in question are multi million dollar projects that divert needed social funding and further indebt these poor countries for the benefit of transnational companies.  The highway system is to be enlarged to be capable of moving international freight across the dry canal of the Central American isthmus and north to the US. 

 

Dams Where Communities Used to Be

Similarly, energy production is slated to increase through the construction of five dams along three rivers – to be able to support the supposed industrialization of the region – an old promise that has thus far brought greater and greater concentration of wealth in the hands of a few families.  Currently, energy production in El Salvador exceeds national demand, and the profit motive (through selling the surplus energy produced) is thought to be the principal interest for these projects.  The dams would displace thousands of families and flood hundreds of acres of agricultural land, archaeological sites, and tourist attractions. 

 

The regionalization of energy is hallmarked by the Salvadoran government as the first part of the PPP:

 

Source: http://www.cel.gob.sv/?categoria=30

 

The still-ruling ARENA party privatized the energy sector of the economy in 1998 as part of the neoliberal economic reforms contemplated in the structural adjustment program that determined the direction of the economy.  In addition to hundreds of firings and the near-total destruction of the energy sector union, privatization also brought large increases in people’s utility bills that translated into great profits for the large energy companies of the United States and Europe that purchased the privatized industry.  Duke Energy of the United States is prominent among the companies.  With petroleum prices high and unlikely to drop, there is considerable interest in producing energy in El Salvador.

 

Concerns

The energy surplus produced thus far from existing dams is exported to Costa Rica and Nicaragua, although it has been recognized that there is an increasing demand for energy within the country, fueled by the energy consumption of greater electrification of the countryside and the increased buying power of remittance-receiving Salvadorans.

 

In addition to the environmental damage and the humanitarian concerns of the families that would be removed from their homes and lands, there is also the very real concern about the management of the dams.  Considering the horrible experiences of the communities of the Lower Lempa – who every year face the six-month rainy season with dread at the thought of flooding caused more by the mismanagement of the dam system than by the rain itself – there is reason to be concerned.  The dams, after all, would be for-profit businesses whose principal concern is not the well being of the population but the well being of stockholders – what’s more, they would be operating in a largely deregulated market with few legal oversights.   

 

Mining: Another Enemy of Clean Water

Exploration for gold and silver was undertaken before the war, but extraction was postponed because of the inability of the state to secure the mining sites – located primarily in the geologically older north of the country, which at the time was controlled by the FMLN guerrillas.   Now, the idea of extraction has re-emerged.  Currently, the only company to be granted an extraction license in El Salvador is the U.S.-based Commerce Group Corporation, for the San Sebastian mine in Morazán, which could hold over 1.5 million ounces of gold reserves.  However, exploration in other parts of the country, notably Chalatenango and Cabañas, has led to massive community resistance.

The highly toxic process of mineral extraction would use millions of gallons of drinking water, contaminating the vital liquid with dozens of chemicals, most notably arsenic and cyanide. 

 

Corruption in the Water Ministry

The discussion over drinking water management has already come to blows across the country.  The under-funded water authority ANDA – currently in the midst of a multi-million dollar embezzlement scandal related to the arrest of former Director Carlos Perla – is incapable of providing water to thousands of paying families in poor areas and throughout the countryside.  Meanwhile, the houses in the wealthy areas have water all day everyday. 

 

Some communities that have been without any water for months at a time have taken to the streets.  The most noteworthy example in the past few weeks is the small city of Tacuba, Ahauchapan, where hundreds of townspeople of every political stripe have been gassed and beaten by national police in hairy street conflicts. 

 

Currently, the water administration office is occupied by townspeople.  Participants in a recent Voices on the Border Delegation spoke with community leaders from Tacuba and learned about the poverty and the significant problems with the allocation of water.  The dozens of water-related protests over the past few years are especially noteworthy because it is one of the few issues that bring this highly polarized society together. 

 

Several proposals are under discussion for a national law regulating drinking water distribution, most focusing on the issue of decentralization.  This would perhaps be a logical approach in a less corrupt society, but the idea of turning over control of this most important resource to lawless municipal governments would result in a rapid pillaging of communal resources.  Interestingly, the autonomous system in operation in the Lower Lempa (built and maintained with the assistance of the United Communities of the Lower Lempa since the earthquake destroyed their water system) could act as a model for decentralized water distribution.  The Water Project is a transparent structure not connected to any other body.

 

The Northern Highway

Also on the list of mega projects is the construction of a third international highway across El Salvador.  The proposal originally surfaced in the 1950s but was never able to generate enough interest to make it economically viable.  Currently, there are two highways running along the East-West axis, through the center and south of the country.  These highways serve the agricultural areas and the populations that work them.  The new highway will run across the mountainous north of the country.  The 460 million dollar project is being funded by US taxpayers through President Bush’s Millennium Challenge Corporation, and has come under questioning by the newly empowered Democrats.  While it is claimed by the government that the project will benefit local residents by facilitating the transportation of goods to market, there is very little support for residents – in these, the poorest of the country’s municipalities – and very little investment in small rural roads upon which the great majority of producers would haul their meager goods to market. 

 

More realistically, the highway’s main beneficiary will be international freight, as it allows goods to travel north and south without having to navigate the capital.  This highway would bisect some of the few remaining natural areas of the country and would contribute to the pollution of important waterways and natural areas.  Thousands of families will be displaced by the construction, with dozens of communities promising fierce resistance to the unpopular proposal.

 

What Are People Doing?

Throughout the country, community organizations, parishes, labor unions, and solidarity groups have been meeting to strategize and to educate themselves about the complex issues surrounding these projects.  Since there is no meaningful consultation being carried out by the government or the corporations to involve the participation of the communities, it is likely that most will be forced to protest the unilateral actions of the government, acting on behalf of large foreign companies.  There have been international forums, and local gatherings of thousands of people, notably in Ciudad Barrios (the birthplace of Mons. Oscar Romero) and in Segundo Montes Communities. 

 

What Can YOU Do?

A little while ago, we asked you to call your congresspeople to ask them to sign on to a Dear Colleague letter speaking out against environmentally unsound mining practices in El Salvador.  Twenty-six members of Congress signed on!  Thank you for your advocacy on this important issue.

 

For now, the fate of the mega-projects in El Salvador is in the hands of the Salvadorans.  Community organizations in the country have the power to resist greedy corporations, and their own government, which does not adequately protect them.  We at Voices feel strongly that we need to support these communities as they struggle to defend their environments, homes, and resources.  Please send a donation to Voices on the Border to support community participation in these important processes.

 

 

For more information, consult:

 

The official version: http://www.cel.gob.sv/?categoria=6

http://www.eprsiepac.com/

 

Environmental groups

CESTA: http://www.cesta-foe.org/

UNES http://www.unes.org.sv

 

Also see:

 

Report: Mining in El Salvador

An introduction to mining in El Salvador, the foreign corporations involved, and the effects this industry has on the land and people of El Salvador. January, 2007