Argentina Eases Glacier Protections: A Controversial Move for Mining

Thu Apr 09 2026 12:59:48 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Argentina's Congress has amended its Glacier Law, allowing for increased mining in glacier regions. Environmentalists warn this decision could threaten vital water resources and exacerbate drought conditions.

Argentina's recent legislative change permits increased mining activities in glacier regions, raising concerns among environmentalists about the potential risks to vital water sources. Previously, the 2010 Glacier Law shielded these areas from mining to protect water reserves. The amendment shifts authority for defining restricted glacier zones from national to provincial governments, aligns with President Javier Milei's agenda, and has spurred both support and significant opposition, including protests demanding the preservation of these natural resources.

Argentina's Congress has passed a controversial amendment making it easier to mine in glacier regions, a move environmentalists say weakens protections for crucial water sources.

The pioneering Glacier Law, approved in 2010, prohibited all mining and exploration activities in glacier regions by protecting them as water reserves.

The reform shifts the responsibility of defining protected glacier areas from the Argentine Institute for Snow, Ice and Environmental Sciences (Ianigla) to the provincial governments.

President Javier Milei, who backed the reform, said the change empower[s] the provinces to utilise their resources and allows mining activities where there was nothing to protect.

Argentina's Senate had already approved the bill in February 2026, so approval by the lower house was the last major hurdle left.

Opponents of the reform argued that it would put a fundamental resource - water - at risk. Without water, we can't even think about a growth and development project, Congresswoman Natalia de la Sota said.

However, Congresswoman Nancy Picón Martínez defended the bill, stating that the mining industry was being unfairly demonized, claiming, This law protects glaciers, no matter how much some people want us to believe otherwise.

Following the reform, glaciers and periglacial environments - regions that may not be covered by ice but are still frozen part of the year - will now be protected by the national Ianigla inventory until provincial leaders provide evidence they do not serve as strategic water reserves.

There are 16,968 glaciers in Argentina, providing water to 36 river basins across 12 provinces, home to seven million people. Meltwater from these glaciers is crucial in mitigating drought impacts, particularly in semi-arid provinces like Mendoza which are increasingly threatened by climate change.

Governors from mineral-rich provinces expressed support for the bill, emphasizing the need to advance sustainable economic development without compromising future generations.

Activists, including Greenpeace, criticized the bill, asserting that all glaciers should be recognized as strategic water reserves due to their vital role in providing freshwater, especially in arid regions.