Ecuadorian Parliament Passes Mining Bill, Sparkling Controversy Over Galápagos Islands Development

Reporting from our correspondent — On Thursday, Ecuador’s National Assembly passed a mining bill proposed by the right-wing government led by President Daniel Noboa, with 77 votes in favour and 70 against. The core objective of the bill is to encourage investment in the mining sector across the country, while the Assembly emphasised that it will crack down on illegal mining activities in the country by "strengthening the supervision and regulation of mining operations". It is understood that Ecuador operates a unicameral parliamentary system, and the government currently holds a majority of seats in the Assembly, providing support for the passage of the bill.

The passage of the bill has attracted widespread attention, with the core controversy focusing on its permission for mining activities in parts of the Galápagos Islands. The bill explicitly allows for the extraction of rock materials on the Galápagos Islands, approximately 1,000 kilometres from the equator, and specifies that the mining areas are not within the scope of the islands’ nature reserves.

The Galápagos Islands (also known as the Islands) are a unique habitat for flora and fauna in the world, located approximately 1,000 kilometres off the western coast of Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean. Composed of 13 small islands and 19 islets, they cover a total area of more than 7,500 square kilometres, 97% of which has been designated as a national park. As a precious natural heritage shared by all humanity, the islands have a fragile ecosystem and are home to a wealth of endemic species — approximately 80% of the birds, 97% of the reptiles and mammals are unique to the islands, earning them the reputation of a "living museum of biological evolution". They were also an important research site for the British naturalist Charles Darwin; his 19th-century theory of evolution originated from in-depth observations of the islands’ species, which also inspired his classic work "On the Origin of Species".

Immediately after the bill’s passage, it was met with criticism and protests from environmentalists, opposition parties and indigenous organisations. Opposition MP Veronica Iniguez expressed strong dissatisfaction, stating bluntly: "We will see how the Galápagos Islands will be turned into commercial development zones." At the same time, she also voiced deep concerns about the future fate of the Amazon region and the highland areas — typical high-altitude wetland areas in the equatorial region.

Protest activities at the civil level also took place simultaneously. Approximately 300 people gathered near the Constitutional Court in Quito, the capital of Ecuador, to oppose the bill through peaceful demonstrations. Participants held placards such as "The land cannot be sold" to express their worries that mining development might damage the ecological environment.

As Ecuador’s largest indigenous organisation, CONAIE (Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador) clearly pointed out in a statement that the introduction of this law will lead to "weakened environmental protection efforts" and "increased risks of river pollution". It is understood that similar concerns are widespread among environmental organisations, and many critics believe that the relevant adjustments to environmental control in the bill may weaken the protection of the ecology, especially the potential impact on fragile ecological areas such as the Galápagos Islands, which deserves vigilance.

It is reported that Ecuador’s mining industry has become less attractive in recent years, with only two large-scale mines in production: the Mirador copper mine and the Fruta del Norte gold mine. The passed mining bill is one of the government’s key initiatives to boost mining investment and drive economic growth, including reforms such as adjusting environmental licensing procedures and establishing mining protection zones to remove investment barriers and curb illegal mining. Currently, controversy over the bill persists, with balancing mining investment, ecological protection and indigenous rights becoming the focus of Ecuadorian society.