A commission of Bucaramanga council members will travel to Washington to petition before the Organization of American States (OAS) that Canadian company suspend mining in an environmentally delicate region of northern Colombian, Caracol Radio reported Tuesday.
Councilman Pedro Nilson Amaya said that during the first week of April he will meet with environmental advisers from the OAS to file an international lawsuit to prevent the extraction of minerals in the Santurban “paramo” region, which acts a watershed for 2.2 million Colombians.
The judicial action is a desperate measure to protect Colombia’s water supply, after the multinational mining company continues to attempt to mine in the area despite resistance from local authorities and environmental groups.
The demand made before the OAS would oblige the Colombian government to protect the moors and wetlands at risk of exploitation for the extraction of minerals such as gold, silver, coal, copper and oil, according to Amaya.