Mapping of damage in the andean highlands on lithium mining

Abstract

This article seeks to contribute to the field of critical cartography and political ecology studies. We analyze some transformations in the Andean highlands, where several lithium mining projects are anchored. The objective has been to understand the effects on the territory, the bio-socio-ecosystems, the historical, ancestral, patrimonial and community fabric, the bodies-territories and the publics and imaginaries of subjects that live in Antofagasta de la Sierra, El Peñón, Ciénaga Redonda and the Salar del Hombre Muerto. On the basis of interviews, we systematized the complaints made by the Atacameños del Altiplano community, and later we carried out a "mapping of damage" on chromatic series that allow us to make visible what has been recorded by local residents of the area. Towards the end of the article, we ponder the damage in order to provide a tool for communities in resistance when tactically and discursively replicating the consequences of lithium mining. In an incipient way and in pursuit of future work, we developed the concept of “vibratile mapping” to understand the dynamics that occur in the context of growing conflict over lithium extraction.

usechatgpt init success