Peru Requiring Miners to Consult Locals over New Projects

processing of marble mines

Peru's leftist president has signed a law requiring mining and energy firms to consult rural communities over new projects, a step aimed at averting conflicts that have stalled investments in recent years.

Rights groups representing indigenous communities have long called for the so-called consultation law, which stops short of giving them veto power over projects and is welcomed by industry leaders in the resource-rich Andean country. More than 100 people have been killed in recent years in conflicts over water, pollution or natural resources, often pitting residents in impoverished regions against foreign mining and oil companies. Peru's ombudsman says the new law, approved unanimously by Congress last month, could quell disputes that often turn violent and pose a threat to some $50 billion in investments planned for the next decade. President Ollanta Humala, who pledged to ensure the poor take part in...