Abstract

OROZCO MARTINEZ, Yuriria  and  RODRIGUEZ GAMEZ, Liz Ileana. Narratives on the risks of mining: cartography and discourses along the Sonora River in Mexico. Intersticios sociales [online]. 2022, n.24, pp.297-331.  Epub Sep 26, 2022. ISSN 2007-4964.

Mining is plagued by significant technological risks that since the second half of the 20th century have shown a growing trend that goes hand-in-hand with important technical innovations that have made the exploitation of low-grade mineral veins feasible and profitable. In this context, the state of Sonora, Mexico, has undergone a resurgence and expansion of mining activity in recent decades that has placed its inhabitants at a constant risk of suffering mining disasters. One example was the disaster caused by the Buenavista del Cobre mine, on August 6, 2014, when 40 000 cubic meters of acidified copper sulfate spilled into the hydric system of the upper Sonora River basin. The aim of our research is to address narratives of risk, people’s problems and fears, their time horizons (future/past), and their actions related to mining in communities along this river. The importance of this case study lies in the following facts: 1) it examines a topic that is of growing importance among social theorists (risk society and cultural theories); and 2) it contributes to the few works that to date have analyzed the complexity of communities' acceptance or rejection of mining activities. The study adopted a qualitative approach implemented through a social mapping workshop with open-ended interviews to learn about inhabitants' experiences related to mining in general and the spill in the Sonora River specifically. Findings revealed a context of tensions and ambivalence through which actors and their discourses move, and that people perceive the past with nostalgia while looking to the future with fear. Above all, the narratives of risk in the Sonora River region are linked to the possibilities of future spills, community displacement, health problems, institutional distrust, and concern for their natural resources.

Keywords : mining; Sonora River; risk narratives; social cartography; technological risk.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )