Analysis of the socio-economic and socio-environmental impacts of mining in the city of Ourilândia do Norte (PA)

Abstract

The mining activity is of paramount importance for the development of societies in their most diverse productive sectors. However, the impacts caused by mining, associated with competition for land use and occupation, generate socioeconomic and environmental conflicts. In this sense, the objective was to analyze these conflicts arising from the mining of nickel in the municipality of Ourilândia do Norte in the State of Pará, carried out by the enterprise Onça-Puma Ltda, linked to Mineradora Vale. Therefore, the present work had as methodology an exploratory research, through indicators and literature review to diagnose the consequences of this activity. The results showed that with regard to the socioeconomic effects for the city under study, despite the incentives received by the government for the implementation of the mining activity, there are still few advantages for local residents of this financial return. Regarding the social and environmental impacts, it was observed that the mineral exploration activity is one of the most degrading to the environment. With regard to basic sanitation, this service has shown a considerable improvement, given the emergence and implementation of the Municipal Sanitation Secretariat and with regard to deforestation, it is known that it is associated with the advancement of mineralogy, as it has generated disputes for land and increased logging. It was concluded, based on the studies, that the production patterns of nickel mining in the region have fostered numerous socioeconomic and socio-environmental impacts, with the consequence of changing the local reality and generating various social and environmental conflicts.