ARGENTINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Sebastián P. Vedoya, Sergio Arbeleche and Dolores Cattaneo, Bruchou & Funes de Rioja
the concessionaire’s right may lapse. Once the project is filed, the concessionaire shall comply with each of its stages in the terms respectively provided for, which may not exceed five years taken together, under penalty that the conces - sionaire’s right may lapse, which penalty is appli - cable upon the first default. 1.7 Mining: Security of Tenure Mining activity is considered by law to be of pub - lic utility and generally has priority over activi - ties conducted on the surface land (with a few exceptions). Mining exploitation concessions are granted in perpetuity, but may expire as a consequence of lack of fulfilment of certain work and investment obligations to be performed in order to keep title in good standing. Please see 1.6 Granting of Mineral Rights . Assignment of mining rights and properties acquired through direct concession under the FMC system are not subject to prior approvals by the government. Oil and gas resources and third category miner - als are not part of the mining concession. Own - ership thereof is subject to specific regulations. Also, there are specific rules to deal with over - lapping situations.
sorts of sectorial permits for performance of prospection, exploration, construction and/or exploitation activities, which should be request - ed and are granted mainly at the provincial level (nature and scope vary on a case-by-case basis). Environmental Rules Applicable to Mining Activity The main environmental regulations applicable to the mining industry are included in the FMC. In addition, the following environmental regula - tions are also applicable to mining activity: (i) general environmental rules applicable to other industries; (ii) Federal Minimum Environmental Standards Legislation; (iii) supplementary regu - lations issued by the provinces. The two most relevant parts of the Minimum Environmental Standards Legislation for the min - ing industry are the General Environmental Law 25,675 (the “General Environmental Law”) and the National Minimum Environmental Protection Standard Law for the Protection of Glaciers and Periglacial Environment, Federal Law No 26,639 (the “Glacier Protection Law “ ). Furthermore, some specific Federal Environ - mental regulations apply when there is an inter - jurisdictional activity. The competent authority in charge of applying such regulations is the Fed - eral Environmental Authority. Glacier Protections The Glacier Protection Law protects certain gla - cial and periglacial geoforms that have a proven hydraulic function as water basin suppliers or water reserves. This mainly includes uncovered glaciers, covered glaciers and rock glaciers with hydraulic functions. Direct intervention in the protected geoforms by new mining projects (those that started after
2. Impact of Environmental Protection and Community Relations on Mining Projects 2.1 Environmental Protection and Licensing of Mining Projects
In addition to the main mining-related permits referred to, the development of mining projects requires an environmental permit and different
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