Mining communities from a resilience perspective : managing disturbance and vulnerability in Itabira, Brazil.
Nenhuma Miniatura disponível
Data
2014
Título da Revista
ISSN da Revista
Título de Volume
Editor
Resumo
This paper applies the resilience lens to a
social–ecological system characterized by the presence of
large-scale mineral extraction operations. The system in
question is the Brazilian community of Itabira, Minas
Gerais, host to an iron ore operation of Vale, the world’s
second largest mining corporation. Utilizing a resilience
assessment framework, this study describes the various
components of the Itabira social–ecological system
revealing the challenges brought about by mining’s dominance.
Data collection included literature reviews and
semi-structured interviews with 29 individuals representing
different stakeholder groups. Findings revealed that,
despite recent efforts by government to regulate the
industry, the mine continues to generate press and pulse
disturbances that impact the resilience of the community.
Operating from the standpoint that resilience depends largely
upon the management capacity of stakeholders, the
research identifies three ways to improve mining governance
in Itabira. First, there is a need for local government
to have more power in dealings with the corporation.
Concurrent with this power, however, the municipality
must demonstrate ownership over its fate, ideally through
the creation of a sustainability plan. Finally, all key parties
must demonstrate commitment to cooperating to resolve
outstanding disturbances, even when these fall outside the
regulatory approval process. While Itabira will remain a
mining town for the foreseeable future, actions taken now
to address challenges will only strengthen community wellbeing
and sustainability moving forward.
Descrição
Palavras-chave
Mining community, Resilience, Sustainability, Governance
Citação
LEIS, J. W.; FITZPATRICK, P.; FONSECA, A. de F. C. Mining communities from a resilience perspective: managing disturbance and vulnerability in Itabira, Brazil. Environmental Management, New York, v. 53, p. 481-495, 2014. Disponível em: <https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00267-014-0230-1>. Acesso em: 20 jul. 2017.