Chile
Barrick Gold Corp.
CPP: $351 million[1]
The Pascua Lama gold deposit is located high in the Andes, in an area rich with glaciers. Glacial run-off irrigates the productive Huasco valley, an agricultural centre just south of the Atacama desert.[2] Barrick’s original plan to relocate portions of several glaciers[3] was met with public outcry and was rejected by the Chilean government. Barrick now claims that it can extract the gold without damaging the glaciers or significantly impacting water resources in the valley.[4] However, a government report reveals that exploration activity may already have caused significant damage to several glaciers.[5] The Indigenous Diaguita community of Huasco-Altino claims that the concession includes part of its ancestral territory and is suing to recover the land.[6]
[1] CPP Investment Board Canadian Equity Holdings as of March 31, 2006. http://www.cppib.ca/files/PDF/Canadian_Equity_Holdings.pdf
[2] Rohter, Larry. So Much Gold, but Andean Farmers See Big Risks, Too. New York Times. July 30, 2006.
[3] Patterson, Kelly. Into the Final Frontier. The Ottawa Citizen. October 2, 2005.
[4] Pascua-Lama Update – Questions and Answers. www.barrick.com (accessed August 17, 2006).
[5] Dirección General de Aguas. Informe de Comisión de Servicio a la III Región. Visita a Pascua Lama, 12 de Enero de 2005.
[6] Ponze, Mireya. Indigenas Mantienen Juicio por Supuesta Usurpación de Tierras de Pascua Lama. La Tercera. 04/06/05.