The Law for the Protection of Glaciers has been regulated

On February 28, 2011 the Argentine President enacted Decree 207/2011 which regulates Law 26.639 (the Law on Minimum Standards for the Protection of Glaciers and the Peri-Glacial Environment Law). Decree 207/2011 has only regulated 4 out of the 17 sections of Law 26.639. The general outlines established by the Decree are the following:

(a) The Decree establishes the specific objectives of the National Glacier Inventory (regulation pursuant to Sections 4 and 5 of Law 26.639).

(b) It defines the Strategic Environmental Evaluation as the systematic process of study of the environmental impact of the policies, plans or programs and their alternatives, including the preparation of a written report and the conclusions of the evaluation as well as their use in public decision-making proceedings (regulation pursuant to Section 7 of Law 26.639).

(c) It appoints the Environment and Sustainable Development Secretariat under the the Chief of Staff of the Cabinet of Ministers as the application authority for Law 26.639 (regulation pursuant to Section 9 of Law 26.639).

Many of the shortcomings of Law 26.639 (see our September and October 2010 issues of our Mining News) could have been solved by its regulation policy. Indeed, the Executive could have delimited the extension of the peri-glacial area (Section 2 of Law 26.639) and the scope of the prohibitions set forth in Section 6 of Law 26.639 (including the prohibition on developing mining activities in the glacial and peri-glacial areas). However, it did not, and this interpretative vacuum will, in some cases, give cause to litigation in order to determine the extent of these provisions. There already are judicial precedents in which the interim suspension of the effects of Sections 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 15 of Law 26.639 has been ordered [Juzgado Federal de Primera Instancia N°1, Province of San Juan, 11/02/2010, “A.O.M.A y Otras c/ Estado Nacional s/ Acción de Inconstitucionalidad” (File No. 33.339); 11/08/2010, “Barrick Exploraciones Argentina S.A. y Otro c/ Estado Nacional s/ Ordinario” (File No. 20.900); 11/08/2010, “Minera Argentina Gold S.A. c/ Estado Nacional s/ Ordinario” (File No. 20.899)].