Bill 579.

Summary.

The bill amends paragraph b of Article 29 of the Mineral Resources Code (Código de Recursos Minerales), which lists the reserve areas established by that Code. The revised wording includes all land, including the subsurface, within the limit of a radius of three square kilometers from settlements of more than one hundred inhabitants, cities or metropolitan areas of three hundred inhabitants, as well as tourist areas. This description of reserve areas provides the basis for the provisions on nonmetallic mineral concessions in the following articles.

Under that provision, the bill would bar the Ministry of Commerce and Industries (Ministerio de Comercio e Industrias) from granting concessions for the exploration, extraction, transport and processing of nonmetallic minerals in reserve areas of the Republic of Panama (República de Panamá). The restriction would cover concessions for each of those activities when located in the areas described in paragraph b. From the proposed law’s entry into force, the Ministry of Commerce and Industries would have to reject outright every new application for such a concession. The provision thus addresses both the granting of concessions and the administrative response to new applications.

The bill also provides that all applications already pending when the proposed law enters into force would be rejected if they seek concessions for the exploration, extraction, transport or processing of nonmetallic minerals located in reserve areas. The Ministry of Commerce and Industries would have to order the closure and filing of those application files within three months following entry into force. The text therefore sets out separate treatment for pending applications and applications submitted from that point onward: pending applications would be rejected and their files closed, while new applications would be rejected outright.

For existing nonmetallic mineral concessions that remain in operation, the bill requires the creation of buffer zones extending at least one hundred meters. Its stated purpose is to reduce negative environmental impacts on nearby communities. This requirement applies to operating concessions and establishes a separation measure in relation to those communities. Article 5 confirms the amendment to paragraph b of Article 29 of the Mineral Resources Code. Article 6 provides that the proposed law would enter into force on the day following its promulgation.

The bill concerns the Ministry of Commerce and Industries and the Mineral Resources Code in the Republic of Panama. Its provisions could affect or interest applicants for and operators of nonmetallic mineral concessions; activities involving the exploration, extraction, transport and processing of those minerals; communities near operating concessions; and settlements, cities, metropolitan areas and tourist areas included in the description of reserve areas.